Harry of the Viridian Forest
by Fafnir's Treasure
Summary: In an attempt to subvert the Prophecy, Unspeakable Lily Potter has transported her family to an alternate universe! The Potters had lived in peace for ten years but now it is time for Harry to start his Pokemon Journey. But will the Fates be denied?
1. The Fates Denied

**Author's Note: I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon, that's why I post on a Fanfiction website. **

**Chapter One **

**The Fates Denied. **

_"The one with the power to vanquish the - Dark Lord approaches… born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives… the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…" _

_Excerpt from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter Thirty-seven. _

The ghostly image of Sybill Trelawney sank into Albus Dumbledore's pensieve leaving a stunned and horrified silence in it's wake.

"James, Lily..."

The two expecting parents turned terrified eyes on their old Headmaster. The perpetual twinkle in his cerulean orbs seemed to have gone out, leaving them more gray than blue. His already aged features were lined with misery and his normally strong body had slumped in on itself in defeat.

"W-Why?"Asked Lily Potter desperately, tears streaming from her emerald green eyes. "Why our boy?"

"Alas," said Dumbledore quietly with genuine regret, "prophecy is a tricky art to understand at the best of times and I never really studied the art of divination, a mistake in hindsight." The Headmaster straightened in his seat. "Lord Voldemort only heard the first line of the prophecy but that was enough to reach the logical conclusion; you and your baby are in danger. I am positive that the Dark Lord will hunt for you in an effort to subvert the prophecy."

"Wait a minute," said James Potter, hope sparkling in his hazel orbs, "The Prophecy might not refer to us at all." Lily looked to her husband with desperate longing. "Frank and Alice Longbottom are expecting a son at the end of July and they've also defied Voldemort three times." James felt terrible for throwing his friends and fellow Aurors under the bus, so to speak, but the lives of his wife and unborn child hung in the balance.

Lily turned hopeful eyes back to the Headmaster.

Albus nodded and took a sip of his tea.

"I have a meeting with the Longbottoms tomorrow. But I fear that you are in more danger than them. I believe that Tom will subconsciously target his fellow half-blood over the pure-blooded Longbottom baby."

The threesome sat in contemplative silence.

"How did Voldemort overhear part of the Prophecy?" Said James. "I highly doubt he had his scaly ear pressed against the door." He peeked at his wife and saw the corner of her lips turn upwards for a second at the absurd mental picture.

Albus stalled, the news would surely upset the Potters, Lily especially.

"Severus Snape," sighed Albus as the two gasped, "He eavesdropped on the job interview the Prophecy was foretold at. The owner of the pup apprehended him and expelled him from the establishment before I could obliviate him."

"That bastard!" Exclaimed James, who jumped from his seat to pace infront of the Headmaster's fireplace.

Lily sank into sobs at the final betrayal of her one time best friend.

"There is a spell I think will hide you from Voldemort," said Dumbledore, catching the distraught couple's attention. "The Fidelius Charm," Lily's head snapped up and the headmaster saw recognition flare in her puffy eyes, "Ah, I believe you've heard of it?"

Lily nodded.

"The Fidelius Charm works by hiding the location of a place in the soul of the Secret Keeper. Only the Secret Keeper can disclose the location to a person. With this charm, Voldemort could stand infront of your driveway and see nothing. If you wish it, I will perform the spell."

James and Lily exchanged a look and seemed to be communicating silently.

"We appreciate the offer Headmaster," said James, "Is there any criteria for choosing the Secret Keeper?"

The Headmaster nodded.

"Let's examine the word 'Fidelius'," said Albus in his most patient 'teacher voice'. "The root of 'Fidelius' is 'Fidelity', meaning 'to trust'. You can be your own Secret Keeper but the Charm works best when trust is placed in another person. Do you have someone you feel you can trust your life to?"

James and Lily exchanged another look.

"Well," hedged the Marauder known as Prongs, "Padfoot and Moony are dead but Wormtail is alive."

Lily's frown dipped into a grimace; she had never liked Peter Pettigrew, even after warming up to Sirius and Remus.

"Would you be agreeable with Peter Pettigrew becoming your Secret Keeper?"

The two Potters nodded.

Shortly after that, plans were made to contact Wormtail and the Potters left the office of the Headmaster for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

**000 0000 000 **

**Entrance Hall, Hogwarts **

"What are we going to do, Lily?"

The temperamental red-head turned and hugged herself to her husband's side.

"We won't trust just the Fidelius Charm."

James raised an eyebrow as he embraced his wife.

"I'm not an Unspeakable for nothing, James," said a convicted Lily. "I'll find a way to save us and our baby from that bastard if it's the last thing I do."

Prongs nodded.

"Yeah, and I'm going to ward our property six ways from Tuesday; If that son of a bitch comes knocking I'll blow him to Hell and back. You know that we Potters have always been Warders; it's how we made our fortune. I would've been one myself if the Aurors weren't so short staffed."

Lily smiled and allowed herself to believe that they could all survive this. Wiggling out of her husband's arms, Lily and James walked to the school gates where they disapparated with a soft pop.

The two Potters would spend the next year and a half planning and preparing for Voldemort's eventual house call.

**000 Scene Change/Time Skip 000 **

**Potter Cottage, Godric's Hollow, Wales **

**October 31, 1981 **

The Potters were playing with their fifteen month old baby in the living room when a Proximity Ward was triggered, sounding a klaxon from the very walls of their home. James jumped up and looked out the window. Scowling, Prongs turned to his wife.

"Lily, he's here."

With those three words, the fiery red-head was all business. She silently summoned a shrunken trunk from the master bedroom and then another from Harry's nursery.

"Do you have everything we need?"

James smiled.

"Of course, Lilylove. I went to Gringotts months ago to empty both the Artifact Vault as well as any outstanding monetary vaults; the Potters have officially left the building."

Lily smiled back at her easygoing husband and bounced an amused Harry in her arms.

Summoning two shrunken trunks from his office, James enlarged and opened one. He waved his wand in a wide arc, making all loose heirlooms, photos, papers, and furniture pack themselves neatly inside.

Looking outside, Lily squinted into the darkness.

"It looks like he just finished disabling the first layer of enchantments."

James nodded and tapped a panel on the wall. The panel was rectangular in shape and made of silver. It was covered in complex rune sequences. Tapping one defensive array, the symbol started glowing softly. Slowly, the other runes started glowing.

""C'mon Lily. That should keep him busy for a while."

Lily, having just finished putting all the shrunken trunks in an expanded bag, nodded towards her husband and led him to the basement of Potter Cottage.

Entering the refurbished wine cellar, James couldn't help but be stunned at his wife's 'pet project'. After the Potters had a chance to absorb the Prophecy they had started preparing. For James, this included setting up a truly vicious slew of enchantments, wards, and traps for any unwanted visitors, as well as emptying all Potter bank accounts and setting their affairs in order. He also helped his wife with whatever she needed while she finalized their escape plan.

For Lily, this involved stealing classified notes on top secret research in the Department of Mysteries and developing a way to help them escape the clutches of an unwanted prophecy. It took a while, but one night three weeks before Harry had been born, Lily was leafing through an old notebook when a curious phrase caught her attention. 'Alternate Universe' Intrigued, Lily began researching furiously for a way to relocate her family to an alternate universe.

The refurbished cellar was the fruits of her labor. From floor to ceiling, every surface was paneled in black marble. Runes covered every available surface and on the wall furthest from the staircase a complex, multi-layered, magic circle would be their departure point. The ambient magic of the surrounding land seemed to seep through the thick rock walls and permeate the very air the wizards and witch breathed. Static electricity prickled along the short hairs on their arms and on the back of their necks.

"Wow..."

Lily smiled at her husband's gift of the understatement.

"C'mon."

The red-head steered her husband to the magic circle. Tapping a charging rune with her wand, a silver light slowly filled the circle. With one final burst of light the circle was no longer a thick stone wall but a rippling window to another world.

The two Potters peered through the rift and saw a quiet forest. Evergreen trees formed a thick canopy that blocked the sun and a well worn path wound it's way through trim, green grass. They could see little creatures scurrying in the tall grass and leaping from tree branch to tree branch.

"You sure this world has modern humans?"

Lily nodded and the two stepped through after activating a powerful, time-delayed, self destruct ward that would incinerate the house and the surrounding acre of land.

**000 Scene Change/Time Skip 000 **

**Ten Years Later **

**Viridian Forest, Kanto **

_"Piertotum Locomotor!"_ James Potter flicked his wand (Mahogany, Phoenix Feather) and animated a series of garden gnomes set to surround and subdue his son in their latest training session.

Eleven year old Harry Potter jabbed his wand (Rowan, Dragon Heartstring) at the garden gnomes and shouted, _"Expulso! Expulso! Expulso!"_ rendering the three animates into dust with rapid-fire bursts of magic.

There was a silence as the dust cleared and at the same time the two male Potters brandished their wands, ready to attempt their next Hex when they were interrupted by a red-headed tempest.

"Harry James Potter! James Charlus Potter!"

A heavily pregnant Lily Potter stormed out of a three story cottage to see her eleven year old son and her man-child of a husband dueling in the front garden. Both boy and man dropped their wands to the sides and ran their hands through their similarly messy black hair in the same manner, drawing a quickly hid smile from the expectant mother.

"What have I told you about dueling so early in the morning -and in the front yard, no less?"

"Sorry mum," said Harry, looking the perfect picture of an abashed eleven year old, "but I'm going on my Pokemon journey soon and I need to practice my magic as much as I can before I leave."

Lily sighed.

"Must you really leave?" pleaded Lily desperately, a hand resting on her swollen stomach, "I don't like the idea of my only son away from home so early, especially with your new little sister on the way."

James put his arms behind his wife to comfort her; they had had many late night talks over her son's desire to become a Pokemon Trainer.

"Mum," began Harry in a tone that said all too clearly that he thought his progenitors were being daft, "all the best Pokemon Trainers start young." Harry looked to the floor, suddenly serious, "When we first came here from Godric's Hollow you never really looked beyond the neighboring city for other Magicals; we might not be as alone as we all thought. We can all sense this worlds ambient magic, I refuse to admit that we're the only three people who can use it."

There it was, the secret reason Harry was dead set on going on a journey; he wanted to find other Magicals. James and Lily closed their eyes in resignation; there was no way they'd hinder their son's noble goal.

"Very well," whispered Lily, "If you're going then we must prepare you. We've been teaching you magic since you were old enough to talk and walk but I can't help but feel it's not enough. Pokemon can be dangerous if trained by those with evil intentions."

Harry stepped forward and hugged his distraught mother, he knew the strain this was putting on her pregnancy but he felt his goals were important.

"C'mon mum, dad, I need to see what I need to pack, and dad said he'd teach me new meditation techniques to control my animagus form. I am leaving for Pallet Town in a month after all."

Lily smiled into her son's unruly raven hair and led her boys into their forest home. It had been ten happy years since they made the decision to run from fate and she had never looked back.

**000 Scene Change/Time Skip 000 **

**One Month Later **

**Route One, Kanto **

Harry Potter had the feeling that he was figuratively standing on the precipice of a grand adventure. Literally, he was walking south on Route One, the major road connecting Viridian City to Pallet Town where Professor Samuel Oak lived. The path was rather scenic with expansive grasslands as far as his eyes could see and the occasional tree providing sparse relief from the summer sun. A gentle breeze carried the scent of wildflowers to his sensitive nose and he smiled; what a good day to begin a journey!

Harry felt he had made good time on the day long hike down Route One. He had started so early in the day that it could probably be considered night and by ten in the morning he was more than half way there. He considered himself lucky that he escaped from his family cottage with as little fussing as possible, something he was sure his father had a hand in.

The young trainer was currently wearing a light blue t-shirt with a dark blue collar, an unzipped black jacket with white trim and accents at the zipper and up the arms and shoulders, a pair of light gray jeans held up by a black belt and a pair of black trainers. His glasses were circular with wire frames and his hair stuck up in all angles. His wand was in a holster on his left forearm. On his shoulders hung an enchanted rucksack with a slew of Undetectable Extension Charms, Feather-Light Charms, and Weatherproofing Charms, in which was a shrunken trunk with spare clothes, an extra ancestor's wand, a knife (more of a dagger, really), money, emergency food held under a Stasis Charm, the Potter family invisibility cloak, and a sleeping bag, not to mention a small section devoted to magical books, premade potions, and potion ingredients.

(AN: If Hermione can have a Bag of Holding in DH then why not Harry?)

Harry sighed and shook his head in exasperation, he felt his mother had gone overboard with the packing but if it made her worry less then he'd carry an entire house with him -not that Harry felt he was going to use most of the stuff she packed for him.

Harry yawned as he recalled his parents final request.

_"Remember Harry," said James Potter, an unusually serious look on his face, "you must not use magic in front of the normals unless it's an emergency, and even then you must be careful to make them forget your abilities." _

_Harry raised his eyebrow. _

_"Your dad's right," agreed Lily with a nod, "you never know how someone will react to your magic, and these people have Pokemon to back up any unfounded fears they might have. They're not like the muggles back in England; they have an immediate power against us. So please be careful." _

Harry snapped out of his reverie when he came upon a signpost with two arrows going in opposite directions. The arrow pointing south read:_ Pallet Town, Three Miles_. The other, pointing north, read: _Viridian City, Seven Miles. _

Nodding to himself, Harry picked up his pace, determined to get to Pallet with enough time to find a place to camp so he could get his Starter Pokemon first thing in the morning.

It took nearly an ninety minutes to walk the last three miles to the peaceful burg and Harry was hungry by the time he crossed the town gate. Finding his way to an alley between two buildings and making sure he wasn't seen, Harry pulled a wrapped sandwich from his rucksack and started munching after removing the Stasis Charm.

Harry eventually had to ask for directions to Professor Oak's Laboratory and when he arrived there was a small line out front. Taking his place, Harry set up camp, knowing that he'd be one of the first getting a Pokemon the next morning.

**000 Scene Change/Time Skip 000 **

**The Next Day **

**Professor Oaks Laboratory, Pallet Town, Kanto **

The crowing of a Doduo woke Harry at sunrise the next day. Siting up blearily, Harry shook his head in an attempt to clear the sleepiness away. Standing up, the prospective trainer stretched before looking around; so far, he was the only one awake. Subtly drawing his wand, Harry cast a Notice-Me-Not Charm so he could stuff his sleeping bag into his expanded rucksack and wait for the lab to open.

Two hours later, Harry and a girl his age were shown into a sterile white room by a nondescript lab aid with smooth black hair wearing a knee length white lab coat. The aid deposited something on a side table and nodded at Harry and the girl before leaving the room through a side door. It was only a few minutes later when an old man with white hair and thick black eyebrows, a brown jacket, a blue polo shirt, and black trousers entered from a side door. He had a kind, grandfatherly appearance but there was an unmistakable spark of knowledge in his brown eyes.

He walked over to a side table and picked up what the aid left behind. Harry recognized it as a few sheets of paper with his information on it.

"Hello, young Harry Potter of Viridian Forest," said Oak with a nod. "Welcome to the wide world of Pokemon! Today you'll be getting your very first Pokemon!" Harry couldn't help but grin a little at his enthusiasm. "Hello Ms. Green," said Oak, turning to the girl, "I spoke to your mother yesterday, If you would tell her that I'd be honored to eat dinner with your family tonight, I'd be grateful."

The girl who's surname was a color nodded with a large smile and Harry raised an eyebrow at both her name and the familiarity these two had.

For the first time Harry really inspected the girl. She had long, straight, brown hair covered by a white sunhat, a light blue tanktop with a tight, sleeveless, black undershirt beneath it. She had a red pleated skirt, white and gray tennis-shoes, and baggy blue socks. She carried a yellow messenger bag and had fuzzy, black sweat bands on her wrists. She seemed to radiate a happy energy.

"So," said Oak, clapping his hands together, "let's go pick out your new Pokemon."

They started walking and Harry decided to introduce himself to his fellow beginner trainer.

"Hi," he held his hand out, "my name's Harry."

The girl grinned and grasped the proffered hand.

"Leaf, but a lot of people call me Green."

Harry was about to say something else when Professor Oak interrupted.

"Okay you two, I have three Pokemon for you to choose from; the Fire type, Charmander," a Picture of an orange salamander-like Pokemon with a flaming tail flashed on the wall from a projector. "The Water type, Squirtle," the picture of Charmander changed to a blue, bipedal turtle with a brown shell, a yellow underbelly, and a swirly, blue tail. "And last but not least, the Grass type, Bulbasaur." The Picture of Squirtle changed to a spotted, green and blue, frog-like Pokemon with a closed bulb on it's back and red eyes.

Leaf turned to Harry.

"You were here before me so why don't you pick first."

Harry looked at the Pokeballs, one of which held his first Pokemon. Suddenly, the choice seemed obvious; he had always been talented at fire aligned magic, learning it quicker than his other spells.

"Charmander," whispered Harry before he grinned and said in a louder voice, "I choose Charmander!"

"A good choice," said Oak while walking to a metallic dais, "this male Charmander will be a good friend to you." He handed Harry his Pokeball.

Green, who had been grinning since she had heard Harry's choice, jumped up and clapped her hands in a private victory.

"Bulbasaur! The Pokemon I want is Bulbasaur!"

Oak turned an amused eye towards her and handed her the Pokeball holding the female Grass Type Pokemon.

"Why don't you call out your Pokem-"

"-Yo, Gramps!"

A boy with spiky brown hair, a black oxford shirt and purple pants pushed past two aids and strutted his way into the laboratory.

"Hello Gary," said the elder Oak.

"I'm here for my Pokemon."

Harry didn't like how smug this boy was.

"You're too late," said Professor Oak with a sigh, "I only have one left." He handed Gary his Pokeball. "This is a Squirtle, he'll be good to you if you are to him."

Gary's scowl turned into a sneer when he saw he fellow new trainers.

"Leaf," he said this in a way that said he thought he was being smooth, "what are you doing with this loser?" He didn't give her a chance to respond nor did he see her scowl at him. "I mean, he's obviously an idiot."

Harry had to physically grab his right hand with his left so he wouldn't pull his wand and hex the tosspot.

"Hey," shouted Leaf, "I bet Harry's ten times the Trainer you are!"

"Fine!" spat Gary, moving ten paces away from Harry and Leaf, "how about a Pokemon battle! You two against me!" He threw his Pokeball, "Go, Squirtle!"

"Gary," sighed Professor Oak as the Tiny Turtle Pokemon burst from it's Pokeball with an exclamation of it's species.

"It's okay," said Leaf, "C'mon Harry, let's teach him some manners!"

"Fine," sighed Harry, "let's go, Cendio!" He threw his Pokeball as everyone turned to stare at him.

"Cendio?" questioned Leaf.

"He has to have a name doesn't he? That'd be like me calling you 'Girl' or 'Human Female' every time I talked to you."

She blinked twice.

"You're absolutely right." she tossed her Pokeball, "go... Flora"

"Impetuous youth..." groaned the Pokemon Professor. "Very well, none of you have ever had a Pokemon battle so I doubt you'll be able to destroy my lab with greenhorn Pokemon."

"I'll even let you make the first move," said Gary arrogantly with a shrug and a shake of his spiky head.

"Cendio, use Scratch!" Shouted Harry, not giving Gary a chance to order to his Pokemon.

The fire lizard snapped a nod and charged forward, claws extended.

"Flora, use Tackle!"

Cendio's attack landed, doing damage and distracting the enemy Pokemon and Trainer.

"Jump, Cendio!"

The Charmander did so just as Flora burst under him and collided with Squirtle, tackling the Water Type bodily to the floor.

"Get up, Squirtle."

Cendio and Flora backed up while the water turtle struggled to get to it's feet.

"Squirtle, return," said Gary, holding up his pokeball. A red beam of light shot from the button on the front of the ball and hit the exhausted turtle, withdrawing it from the battle. "That's enough, We'll train and get stronger and we'll be back. Gramps, smell you later!"

He was nearly at the door when Professor Oak stopped him and handed him a small red machine. They talked quietly for a moment before Gary nodded and left. Walking back to Harry and Leaf, Professor Oak took two more red machines from a coat pocket and handed them to the two young trainers

"This," began Oak importantly, "is a Pokedex."

He received two blank looks.

"What?" spluttered the Professor, "Don't tell me you've never heard of a Pokedex?"

Harry and Leaf shook their heads making Oak sigh dejectedly.

"A Pokedex is an electronic encyclopedia that contains information on nearly every known Pokemon in Kanto. When you see a Pokemon, new data will automatically be recorded in it's database. I invented them," he looked at Flora and Cendio, "and I only give them to Trainers in which I see a lot of potential, so they're quite rare."

The duo looked at the little machines in awe, making the Pokemon Professor smile.

"I also have these," he handed them five Pokeballs each. He waited long enough for Harry and Leaf to put the balls and 'Dex in their bags. "Now, I think it's safe to assume that you're going in the same direction, right?"

Harry and Leaf looked at each other and shrugged.

"Why don't you two travel together? A journey is always more fun when taken with friends."

"That's a great idea!" beamed Leaf, "What d'you think, Harry?"

"Alright," grinned Harry.

"Excellent," exclaimed Oak, clapping his hands together, "remember to take care of each other, and above all else, I want you to have fun."

The two new trainers grinned, thanked the Professor and left the lab after recalling their Pokemon... only to meet Gary and a black-haired boy wearing green and yellow pajamas in the midst of an argument.

"-Got your first Pokemon?" asked the black-haired boy enviously.

Garry took out the Pokeball carrying Squirtle and spun it on his finger.

"That's right, loser. It's right inside this Pokeball, waiting for me to call it."

"What Pokemon did you get?" asked the black-haired boy.

"The none of your business kind!" Snapped Gary. "If you had gotten here on time you would've seen that I got the best one there is."

"Tough talk," snorted Harry and drawing the attention of the bystanders, "for someone who just got his butt kicked by us."

"It was two against one!" Growled Gary as the crowd gasped. What appeared to be a Corvette full of cheerleaders promptly started crying over Gary's admitted loss.

"You challenged us and acted like a smarmy idiot during the battle!"

"What'd you say!"

"Red!" said Leaf in an attempt to stall a fight, but not before noticing Harry's right hand inching it's way to his left sleeve, "Why are you so late?"

"Don't call me Red, Leaf," deadpanned the black-haired boy. "My name's Ash. I'm late because I broke my alarm clock in my sleep. Now, I really need to get my Pokemon."

Ash shouldered his way past Gary and entered the lab, eager to claim his own Pokemon.

Leaf shrugged and Harry turned a questioning eye towards his new companion who mouthed the word 'later,' at him.

"That loser is going to be so disappointed," sneered Gary. "Gramps doesn't have any more Pokemon to give out."

"Oh, go away," groaned Leaf.

"Fine," spat Gary, his normally smug face scowling at Leaf, "But there's no chance that that idiot's going to make it as a trainer!"

Harry couldn't help letting loose a growl to match his animagus form as Gary turned and strutted to the red corvette filled with cheerleaders. As the car was pealing out of the town, Leaf turned back to Harry.

"Hey, let's go to my house. I need to talk to my mom before we leave."

Harry smiled and nodded at his newest friend.

000 0000 000

"Mom!"

A woman of average height with brown hair similar to Leaf's came out of a simple, two story cottage wiping her hands on her flowery apron. Harry could see a minimized Pokeball on a delicate silver chain around her neck.

"Hello Leaf," she had a soft, soothing voice, "back already?"

Mrs. Green's eyes darted to Harry and she smiled.

"Hello dear, and who are you?"

"Harry Potter, Ma'am."

"It's good to meet you," she held out a surprisingly calloused hand.

"Likewise, Ma'am," said Harry, shaking the proffered hand, "Leaf and I are going to be traveling together on our journey."

"That's great," replied Mrs. Green, dropping Harry's hand, "Journeys are much more fun with friends!"

For some reason, she had a wistful smile on her face as she said that. As though she was remembering something or someone fondly.

"That's what Professor Oak told us," said Leaf before her eyes widened, "Oh!" she exclaimed and took Flora's Pokeball out of her bag, "I nearly forgot, we got our first Pokemon! Go, Bulbasaur!" Leaf tossed her Pokeball at her feet and the Seed Pokemon popped out. "This is Flora!"

Flora reared back on her hind legs and set her front paws on Leaf's knees like a dog begging to be picked up

"Bulba!"

Grinning, Leaf couldn't help but sink to her knees and rub the top of Flora's head, making her close her eyes in pleasure. Harry took Charmander's Pokeball from his pouch and also tossed the it to the ground.

"Come on out, Cendio!"

The Flame Pokemon burst from his Pokeball in a flash of light.

"Char!"

Harry knelt in front of his Starter and rubbed his head.

"I don't know if I told you this, Cen, but you were great back at the lab. We really showed that wanker, huh?"

Cendio made a purring noise while Mrs. Green looked inquiringly at her daughter.

"Gary," spat Leaf like his name was a disgusting swear word, "he ran his mouth too much back at the lab so Harry and I showed him that he needed to treat others with respect."

Mrs. Green tutted and proceeded to fuss over her only daughter for nearly an hour before she fed them lunch and escorted them to the town gates. Where, after a long, drawn out goodbye, the two new trainers were finally on the road to Viridian City.

**000 Chapter End 000 **

**Author's Note: **Hello all. Faffy here with a new story, this time it's a Harry Potter/Pokemon Crossover. This was partially inspired by Auriansmule's story Harry Potter and the Pokemon Adventure: Kanto (not to mention all the other Harry Potter/Pokemon crossovers I've read) The bloke deleted it so I decided to write my own crossover. I've had this jumping around my head for a while now and I'd never get any work done on my other stories if I didn't get this down on electronic paper.

Alternate Chapter Title: A Prophecy Subverted.

**Money**: Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts might not be used in the Poke-world but gold, silver, and bronze are. A little magical smelting and you have valuable metals to be sold in Viridian City.

**Harry's Magical Education: **Since Harry's parents don't need to work they spent their free time teaching their son all they could from a very young age. Luckily, he inherited his mother's brains and his father's cleverness (not to mention their combined stubbornness, and Lily's quick temper) and he learned quickly. I would place his skills at someone at the end of their fourth year.

Harry's wand is not a perfect match, in terms of percentage Harry's wand is an eighty-five percent match. It's the best out of all the Ancestor Wands James had taken from the Potter Family Artifact Vault at Gringotts.

I've taken some license when it comes to Pokemon locations and Move pools because, like my Kingdom Hearts/Harry Potter Crossover, this is a story, not a video game. I can't write "Harry pressed his 'X' button and access the menu so he could check his Pokemon's level".

Do you really think that had James lived he wouldn't have taught his children as many rule breaking tricks as possible (away from the watchful eye of Lily Potter) I include the Animagus transformation in that. The Potters truly think they've eluded the Prophecy but they want to make sure that should trouble (Read: a Dark Lord) comes knocking, that their son has the best tools available to combat him. That's why he spent his childhood learning magic instead of dicking around like a normal kid.

Thak you for reading, please review.

-Faffy out


	2. New Enemies

AN: I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon. That's why I post on a _fan_fiction website.

**Chapter Two **

**New Enemies **

**Three Hours Later **

**Route One, Kanto **

"ARGGH!" Leaf yelled dramatically, throwing her hands to the heavens. "We haven't seen one Pokemon!"

Judging by the glare Leaf was giving him, Harry wasn't able to cover his laugh completely.

"What?" yelled Leaf. "This is ridiculous! Route One is supposed to be filled with weaker Pokemon for trainers just starting out."

"Don't get so upset." soothed Harry, hands out as if to shush her. "Just turn around and you'll get a big surprise."

"Huh," said Leaf dimly.

Harry made a twirling motion with his finger, prompting his companion to spin on her heel and see a pinkish, rabbit-like Pokemon with purple spots, large ears, front teeth, and red eyes. It had several thorn-like spines on it's back and one large horn on it's forehead. Apparently, the creature hadn't noticed them yet because it was sniffing at the ground unsuspectingly.

Both trainers pulled their Pokedex out of their pockets which dinged softly as it registered new data.

_Nidoran (M):  
>The Poison Pin Pokemon. It raises its big ears to check its surroundings. It will strike first if it senses any danger. Beware the potent poison it stores in it's central horn. <em>

"I'm going to catch it," whispered Leaf while drawing Flora's Pokeball and an empty one. "Go, Flora! Let's catch us a new Pokemon!"

The Nidoran perked up to smell the air but it didn't have much chance to defend itself because it was tackled to the ground by the Seed Pokemon. Jumping back, Flora dodged a retaliatory jab of Nidoran's horn.

"Jump to the left, Flora!"

Hearing her trainer's command, Bulbasaur did just that and avoided a follow up stab aimed for her flank.

"Use Leech Seed, Flora!"

The Grass Type nodded, planted it's hind quarters in the air to aim, and shot three small seeds from the bulb on it's back. The first seed missed completely but the other two were dead on. They exploded and wrapped the struggling Poison Pin Pokemon in many vines that were slowly draining the Nidoran's vitality.

Leaf simply tossed a Pokeball which hit the Nidoran before opening up and sucking it inside. The ball wiggled on the ground as the Pokemon struggled, once, twice, three times. A hollow dinging noise signified a successful capture.

"Yes!" Leaf jumped for joy and collected her new Pokemon before turning to Flora and opening her arms while sinking to her knees. That was all the invitation the Bulbasaur needed because she ran into her Trainer's arm's with a jubilant exclamation of her species.

All the while Harry looked upon them with a happy smile.

"Next Pokemon we see is mine, yeah?"

Recalling Flora, Leaf stood and walked to her friend, a bounce in her step.

"Yep! Next one's all yours."

Harry's excited grin faded when he looked to the sky; a lot of ominously black clouds were gathered on the horizon and were moving closer to them at a rather rapid speed. Thunder sounded and Leaf jumped with a squeak of surprise.

"Not one word..." grumbled Leaf, pointing at a grinning Harry with a shaking index finger.

**000 Scene Change/Time Skip 000 **

**Later That Night **

**Pokemon Center, Viridian City, Kanto **

The Pokemon Center, a place of healing and rest, was a large building painted a soft yellow with a large capital 'P' on it's marquee, it had thick glass windows and an orange roof. The inside of the Center was comfortable but also outfitted with the latest technology, including new Video Phones. It was at these Video Phones that Harry Potter was talking with his mother and father as sheets of rain pounded against the glass panels and thunder drowned out part of the conversation.

"-And then Leaf used the Pokeball and caught Nidoran."

"Well it sounds like you've had an exciting two days," said Lily, who looked desperate to hold her son. "When you come through the forest tomorrow you'll have to introduce us."

"Of course, mum," something caught his eye up at the service counter. "I'll talk to you later, Nurse Joy just finished healing Cendio, Flora, and Nidoran."

The family said their good-byes and hung up. Standing, he collected the three Pokeballs from the attending Nurse before he headed to his and Leaf's shared room. The rented room had sterile white walls, a bunk bed, a nightstand with a lamp, and an attached bathroom. Setting her Pokeballs on the bottom bunk of their bed, Harry climbed to the top bunk and gathered his toiletries and waited for Leaf to exit the loo.

**000 0000 000 **

Dressing while damp, Harry thought, was not his preferred modus operandi. He had just finished washing his hair and was rinsing the soap rom his body when a crash sounded and the desperate yells of Nurse Joy cut Harry's shower short. He managed to garb himself in some black shorts, an open bathrobe, and his glasses before he stuffed his wand in a pocket and grabbed his Pokeballs.

Rushing out to the main lobby, Harry saw total bedlam.

Leaf, the boy who was late getting to Oak's lab, and an unknown girl were facing off against two uniformed villains and a white, cat-like Pokemon with a shiny gold coin on it's forehead. The people in white seemed to have crashed through the large glass windows and Nurse Joy was slumped against a wall, unconscious.

Leaf wore a simple set of pj's; a light blue shirt, some white shorts, and a pair of slippers.

Ash's clothes were drenched. He had a red and white vest with a popped collar, a black t-shirt, blue jeans, and red and black shoes. Topping his head was a white and red ball cap that pushed his spiky black hair out the sides and back. His expression was worried and he kept glancing to the doorway leading to the Intensive Care Unit.

The unknown girl was also wet. She had red hair tied in a ponytail at the side of her head and blue eyes. She wore a yellow tank top that exposed her midriff, short, blue, denim shorts held up by red suspenders, and red canvas shoes. She carried a red rucksack over her shoulder, and for some reason, the charred remain of what used to be a top quality bicycle lay overturned at her feet.

The closest uniformed person was a man holding a rose who had blue hair parted down the middle, framing a smug mug. He wore a white, long-sleeve, jacket with a big, red, capital 'R' embossed on the front, and black gloves. He had white pants that were tucked into shiny black boots.

The other person was a woman with a haughty expression and who's red hair had one large curl at the end. Her outfit was similar to her partner's only her white jacket showed her belly-button, her pants were replaced by a short skirt and her boots had high heels.

Harry couldn't help but notice that while Leaf and the other girl had Pokeballs in their hand Ash did not.

"What's going on?" Shouted Harry in as strong a voice he could muster."Who are you?"

"Oh dear," mocked the blue-haired man.

"It seems we interrupted the little twerp's bath time," added the woman.

"Go back ta playin' with your rubba' ducky, little boy. If ya' don't then you'll hafta' deal with Meeeouth!" The Pokemon extended it's claws.

Harry would've been more angry with their taunts had he not just heard a Pokemon speak English.

"A talking cat!"

"Bravo, genius," smirked red-haired woman.

Her partner put his hand on her shoulders.

"Now, Now, my dear. In the name of manners we really should introduce ourselves."

The female villain took a deep breath.

_"Prepare for trouble!" _

_"Make it double!" _

_"To protect the world from devastation!" _

_"To unite all peoples within our nation!" _

_"To denounce the evils of truth and love!" _

_"To extend our reach to the stars above!" _

_"Jessie!" _

_"James!" _

_"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!" _

_"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" _

_"Meowth! That's right!"_

They obviously thought Harry should be impressed because they ended their limerick in a rather stupid pose where they bent themselves into the shape on a capital 'R'.

"You're rhyming villains?" Snorted Harry. "What's your goal? To bore us to death with bad poetry?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see Leaf struggling not to laugh at the two-bit crooks.

"How dare you!" Shouted Jessie, "We are premiere Pokemon terrorists! And we're here to steal all the Pokemon!"

"Yeah," said James, "why don't we show you our power?" He threw a Pokeball. "Go, Koffing!"

A purple, boulder-esque Pokemon burst from the Pokeball and floated a few feet off the ground. It had a round body with several crater-like protrusions. It wore a blissful expression on it's face and had a skull and crossbones on it's body.

Harry, Leaf, and Ash all pulled their Pokedex at the same time, all of which dinged with new information.

_Koffing (M):  
>The Poison Gas Pokemon. Because it stores several kinds of toxic gasses in its body, it is prone to exploding without warning. The gasses in it's body are lighter than air, allowing it to float.<em>

"A great idea, James!"

The red-headed villain also threw a Pokeball and a seven foot long serpentine Pokemon erupted from the container. It had purple scales with yellow eyes, bands, and a rattle.

The Pokedexes dinged.

_Ekans (M):  
>The Snake Pokemon. It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind. It does not have the ability to inject poison with it's bite until it evolves. <em>

"You want to fight?" asked Leaf. "Fine! Go, Nico!"

Leaf threw a Pokeball and the Nidoran she had caught earlier appeared in a flash of light.

"Go, Pokeball!" shouted the ginger-haired girl while throwing the capsule. A tan, star-like Pokemon, erupted from the ball. It had a golden formation on it's front and at the center of the starfish Pokemon was a red gem.

The Pokedexes dinged.

_Staryu (Genderless):  
>The Star Shape Pokemon. As long as the center section is unharmed, it can grow back fully even if it is chopped to bits. The red jem at it's center is called a Core and it shines in rhythm like a heart beat. <em>

Harry ran forward and tossed his Pokeball, calling Cendio to battle.

"So," he said conversationally to Leaf, "Nico?"

"Yeah," replied the brown-haired girl. "I've been thinking about it since I caught him and I like that name."

Harry smiled and gestured to Team Rocket.

"Shall we?"

Leaf's smile turned into an absolutely vicious grin.

"Oh yes."

"Ash," shouted Harry. "Is your Pokemon good to battle?"

"No," answered the sopping wet, black-haired boy, "Pikachu was really hurt and he just finished being treated when these idiots burst in."

"Right," nodded Harry, "get Nurse Joy to safety and then call the Police. Let us handle these two wankers."

Ash didn't like it but he acquiesced knowing that without a Pokemon he'd just be in the way.

"Oh no you don't, little boy! Ekans, stop that twerp!"

The Snake Pokemon launched itself at Ash, mouth open and fangs extended as if to bite the ten year old trainer but was knocked aside by Nico's tackle.

"We're your opponents!" Shouted Leaf. "Nico, toss that snake away!"

Nico hefted Ekans using it's horn as a shovel and threw it back towards it's trainer. The Snake Pokemon landed in a heap and slowly reared back while shaking its flat, purple head side to side in an effort to clear it.

"Cendio! Use Ember!"

"Dodge, Ekans!"

The salamander-like Pokemon snapped a nod and twirled on it's heels while sharply flicking it's flaming tail at the confused snake. Ekans was barely able to avoid getting a lot of hot ash in his face by flattening himself to the floor.

"Koffing!" commanded James while putting on a pair of goggles and a rebreather before tossing a set to his partners. "Use Smoke Screen!"

"Kof-Koffing!" The Poison Gas Pokemon spun in the air and released a thick cloud of dark gas, blocking sight and choking the enemy combatants.

"Sta-Staryu!" Gagged Misty. "Use Rapid Spin, Clear away the smog."

The star shaped Pokemon shot large amounts of high powered water out of it's five points to spin fast enough to cause a whirlwind, blowing the smoke away. Only to reveal that Team Rocket had used Koffing's attack to run away.

"W-where did they go?" Snarled Harry as he whipped his glasses off to rub his enflamed eyes; his senses were already sharp before he completed the animagus transformation but now they were nearly superhuman and attacks like that nearly rendered him unconscious.

"If their goal is to steal the Pokemon then they must have gone deeper into the center," said leaf who was looking concernedly at Harry.

"No time to waste, c'mon!" He recalled Charmander, stuck the Pokeball in his short's pocket, and ran to the ICU.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Ash Ketchem of Pallet Town just dived to the floor as a Nidoran belonging to Leaf tackled the Ekans belonging to the female Team Rocket member to the ground. Ash stumbled to the downed nurse.

"Come on," pleaded Ash as he gently shook her shoulders. "Nurse Joy we need you to wake up! The Pokemon are in danger, my Pikachu is in danger!"

"Uhhn," moaned Joy, "What? In danger?" She sat up slowly, rubbing her head. "What's happening?"

"Team Rocket's attacking us!" Ash sharply gestured to the ongoing battle, "We need to call the police!"

"R-Right," said a woozy Nurse Joy, "Help me walk to my office, it has a direct line to Officer Jenny."

Ash threw Joy's arm over his shoulder and bore most of her (light) weight.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

_'Damn,'_ thought James, _'these twerps have some skill...' _

"Koffing!" commanded James while putting on a pair of goggles and a rebreather and then tossing a set to Meowth and Jessie. "Use Smoke Screen!"

While Koffing made his distraction, Jessie recalled Ekans and followed James and Meowth out of the main lobby and towards the hallway leading to the ICU, where security was the least heavy.

"Meowth," commanded James, as was his right as lead field agent, "Follow the black-haired brat and the Nurse. You're authorized to use extreme force to subdue them. Then I want you to force them to show you where the rare Pokemon are kept. Make them lead you there. Got it?"

The bipedal cat nodded.

"Good, use your rebreather to radio in when you've completed your mission."

Meowth fell to all fours and ran as fast as he could so he could catch up and stalk Ash and Joy from the shadows.

"C'mon Jessie," said James gesturing with his head towards the other end of the white washed hallway, "we're playing decoy this time. Let's lead those other twerps on a merry chase."

He and his partner quickly ran to the far end of the hallway where James kicked the door to the basement sublevel open and they charged down a dimly lit stair well. They descended two floors and ran until they hit a fork in the corridor. They each took a different direction after leaving a calling card to taunt the three other trainers into following.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

"I'm Misty, by the way," panted the ginger-haired girl as they chased after the two Poke-Terrorists.

The group of trainers stopped at the open and dented door to the sub basement.

"Harry Potter," said the young wizard in hiding. "It's a pleasure to meet you, though I wish it were under better circumstances." He held out his hand to shake hers. "This is my friend, Leaf Green." The two girls shook hands and exchanged polite greetings.

With the pleasantries out of the way the group of young heroes descended the stairs.

Walking cautiously, lest they be attacked from behind, Harry, Leaf, and Misty came upon the forked corridor. The left path had a smear of red lipstick on the wall in the shape of a feminine set of lips, underneath the marking, was a map of the Viridian City Aqueducts. The right path had the rose James was carrying leaning against the wall, on which hung a worn map of the Viridian City Underground.

"If we want to catch them we'll have to split up," said Leaf pragmatically.

"What are these things?" Asked Harry. "The Aqueducts and the Underground, I mean?"

"The Underground was first used as a path to get around the city," explained Misty. "When Viridian was first built nearly a hundred years ago, the Underground was just a natural cave system. Since then, humans have made it more modern and have used it for anything like the storage of construction equipment, to bootlegging and drug running. It is said to be a great way to avoid police because there are no complete maps and most electrical equipment malfunctions down there. This has led to rumors that the Underground is haunted by ghosts."

Misty took a deep breath.

"The Aqueducts are nearly as old as the Underground. Before modern plumbing brought fresh water directly to a home, people had to bring pails to the fountains and wells dotting the surface where skilled stone masons had managed to divert a fresh stream. Thus, the Aqueducts were born."

"Listen," said Misty, "why don't you two go together after James in the Underground, I'll take Jessie in the Aqueducts. I specialize in Water Pokemon and I'll be able to battle to my fullest down there."

Misty must've seen Harry's dubious expression because she elaborated.

"Look," the ginger tomboy said, "I've been training Water Types since I was very young. And I have three of them with me right now. I have more experience than you two. You're like Ash, right? This is your first day as a trainer?"

They both nodded.

"Then I wouldn't feel comfortable making one of you go into battle against a Poke-Terrorist alone, and that's what'd happen if one of you came with me."

Harry scowled; he didn't like being treated like a kid by a girl who was at most a year older than himself. He didn't even need a Pokemon to fight but he realized that his abilities must remain a secret so instead he just nodded in agreement with his more experienced contemporary.

Misty shook her red rucksack from her shoulders and pulled four syringes from it's depths. Handing two to each younger trainer, Misty Explained.

"They're Potions."

Harry's ears perked up.

"They'll heal your Pokemon if they're too hurt to battle. Nothing beats a night under Nurse Joy's care but when you have no other choice, a quickly applied Potion is better than unconsciousness or worse."

Leaf and Harry gulped at the grim reminder.

"Alright!" Misty turned on her heel and faced the hallway leading to the Aqueducts. "Let's meet back here in an hour, yeah?"

Leaf and Harry nodded and Misty started jogging down to the underground waterway. Harry turned to Leaf.

"Ready to go?"

She swallowed nervously and nodded. Turning around, the two set off at a jog for the Viridian City Underground.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

The Last-Trainer-To-Leave-Pallet had just settled Nurse Joy onto a hospital bed and left through the front doors to await the police. The bedridden nurse had barely been coherent when she made the call for help and the young trainer had to take the phone from her and finish the SOS by himself.

So here he was, standing in the pouring rain waiting for help. Ash rubbed his smarting ear; apparently, law enforcement officers didn't like it when children attempted to fight wanted criminals on their own (or at all) and had seen fit to scold the boy in place of his mother. It didn't matter that Ash never really fought the two Poke-Terrorists, he knew that he would have, had his Pokemon been up to the task.

_'Pikachu..' _

Ash shook his head; he needed to stay focused and dwelling on his critically injured Pokemon wouldn't help anyone.

Ash sighed and resigned himself to waiting.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

The Scratch Cat Pokemon hissed under his breath; he had failed his first mission. The brat had managed to contact the police by barricading the door with a heavy wooden desk. By the time he had found a way into the room the kid had left through a hidden door.

With a silent promise that he wouldn't fail his other mission, Meowth hopped onto the bed that Nurse Joy slumbered on. Standing on her stomach, Meowth jumped up and down to wake her.

Nurse Joy jerked into consciousness and was about to shout for help when Meowth extended his claws and silenced her with a scary face.

"Now," said Meowth, "you're going ta' show me where ya' keep the Pokemon. I'm claiming them in tha name of tha boss of Team Rocket."

Nurse Joy gulped in fear but resolutely shook her head. Meowth hissed quietly and ran a long white claw across Nurse Joy's cheek, drawing crimson blood. Nurse Joy bit her lip to keep from screaming in pain but held on to the fact that she only needed to hold out until help arrived.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Misty Waterflower had been walking for a while. It had only taken a few minutes for the white paneled walls of modern construction to give way to a corridor lined with rough hewn stone blocks.

The hallway had eventually split into a four-way intersection. Frowning, Misty had looked around and spotted a stream of water leaking out from between a crack in the ancient bricks and dribbling down the moss covered cobblestones to her left. Misty smirked, she had a feeling that Jessie would be in the deepest part of the Aqueducts so she pulled a Pokeball and followed the water down hill.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

"Damn!"

Harry pounded the wall with his fist and rubbed the bridge of his nose; the Smokescreen attack was still wreaking havok on his senses and a migraine was quickly developing between his eyes.

"Harry," the concerned voice of his friend and traveling companion, Leaf, sounded from somewhere behind him. "What's wrong? You've been agitated since Team Rocket escaped."

Harry sighed, he hadn't realized that his fledgling animagus ability had been affecting his personality so blatantly.

"It's nothing, Leaf," sighed Harry. "I have a headache. The Smokescreen really messed with my sinuses."

Leaf thought that an odd statement because, novice though she may be, she knew that a simple Smokescreen should not effect humans in such a way. Fortunately (for Harry), she realized they weren't in the best position to play twenty questions and chose to hold them until later.

"C'mon," whispered Leaf, "let's catch James and get you some aspirin."

The boy wizard smiled, happy that his normally boisterous partner was sympathetic enough to his plight that she kept her voice down.

**000 0000 000 **

Nearly fifteen minutes later, the two trainers hadn't made any progress and were still walking down the same corridor. Nothing had changed, The same white panels hung from the walls giving the entire complex a sterile, antiseptic feel.

"This is ridiculous!" puffed Leaf.

Harry nodded, his migraine had passed ten minutes ago but he too was tiring quickly.

The fluorescent lighting hanging overhead started flickering in an effort to stay on but after only a few moments they gave way and the Underground was plunged into darkness. Harry reflexively reached for his wand, fully intending to use a Wand-Lighting Charm when Leaf's voice reminded him that he wasn't alone.

"Oh that's great!" exclaimed the brown-haired trainer sarcastically. "Now what are we going to do?"

"You need to keep calm," said Harry.

Had Harry been able to see Leaf he would 've shrunk away in fear as she rounded on him, her hands on her hips, fully intending to box his ears and give him a lecture.

"Don't you tell me to keep calm, Harry Potter! I'm always calm! My middle name is calm! I am the Queen of Calm!"

As her sentence carried on, her voice got shriller and shriller until finally Harry could no longer stand it and pulled out Charmander's pokeball with a sigh.

"Come on out, Cendio!"

A short flash of light later and the area around the Lizard Pokemon was illuminated by the fire on the tip of his tail.

"Oh," said Leaf simply and with more than a little embarrassment. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, Harry," said Leaf in an effort to keep the silence from turning awkward. "I panicked when the lights went away."

"It's no big deal," said Harry with a smile and a shrug. "I was a second from the same thing when I remembered that I was a Pokemon Trainer now."

"C'mon," leaf sighed, "the only thing we can do is keep walking; this corridor has to end soon."

Harry nodded and began leading the way with Cendio.

They had been walking for only a few minutes when Harry's sensitive hearing picked up what sounded like snickering. Motioning for Leaf to stop walking and remain quiet, he recalled his Charmander and, under the cover of total blackness, he drew his wand and whispered the incantation for a spell that would allow him to see in the dark.

"Harry," whispered Leaf, "what is it?"

"Can't you hear it," muttered the wizard, "that noise?"

Because of his spell, he could see her shaking her head frantically.

"s-s-s-stly..."

Leaf must've heard that one because she squeaked.

"Who's there?" Questioned Harry, trying to keep his voice strong but tightening his grip on his wand at the same time

Harry heard a rustling to his right and he threw Cendio's pokeball in that direction and aimed his wand, ready to hex whoever was sneaking around. Charmander's summoning once again lit the corridor revealing a Pokemon Harry had never seen before.

It appeared to be a floating black ball and had a nimbus of purple haze wafting around it's body. It had large, angular, white eyes with small black pupils and two vampire-like fangs in it's wide mouth.

Before anyone could react, Harry whipped out his Pokedex which dinged with new information.

_Gastly (M):  
>The Ghost Pokemon. Its thin body is made of gas. Despite lacking substance, it can envelop an opponent of any size and cause suffocation. It has the ability to disappear and reappear by hiding in the shadows.<em>

Harry and Gastly were too busy measuring eachother's worth to hear Leaf's frightened exclamation of 'A ghost!'

Suddenly, Harry cocked his head to the side and grinned, "he's perfect! Charmander, Ember!"

The ghost was caught off guard by Harry's sudden shout and took a lot of hot ash and bolts of fire to the face. Disappearing, the Ghost Pokemon flitted behind the Lizard Pokemon and reappeared. Gastly's eyes widened and an invisible attack dropped Chamander to his knees, disappearing before Harry could order Cendio to counterattack.

"Cendio!" shouted Harry, inspired, "Increase the power to your tail, light this place up!"

Chamander nodded and the blaze on the Lizard Pokemon's tail suddenly flared, banishing all of Gastly's possible hiding places and thrusting him into a dizzying amount of light.

"Use Ember once more!"

Charmander's tail snapped to the left and nailed Gastly with a supercharged Ember. Gastly sank to the floor and Harry, not wasting a second, threw a Pokeball at the exhausted ghost. Gastly was sucked into the capsule which wiggled once, twice, three times before going still with a hollow ding, signifying Harry's first successful capture.

"Yeah!" yelled Harry while pumping his fist in the air, not even noticing that with Gastly's capture the overhead lights flickered back to life. He picked up Gastly's Pokeball and knelt in front of Charmander. "You were great," said Harry, rubbing the Lizard Pokemon's head and grinning at him.

Charmander puffed out his orange chest in pride.

"Here," said the wizard in hiding, holding the Pokeball in front of his Starter's nose, allowing him to sniff at it. "This is our new friend." Cendio nodded and then yawned, he was obviously tired from Gastly's invisible attack. Harry pulled out Charmander's Pokeball and tapped him on the head with it, sucking him inside for a well deserved rest.

Standing back up, Harry held Ghastly's Pokeball underneath his Pokedex to check what moves he knew. Nodding to himself, he turned back to Leaf noticing that she had a strained smile on her face.

"What's up?"

"I-I know that I said the next Pokemon was your's but why did you have to catch that one?"

"Huh?" Said Harry dumbly.

"It's a ghost! Why would you want a ghost as a Pokemon?"

Harry grinned slyly.

"Are you afraid of ghosts?"

"N-no!" exclaimed an indignant Leaf.

Harry's grin widened and he stepped closer to her. Pulling out Gastly's Pokeball, he held it to her face.

"So, if I were to bring out Gastly and let him acquaint himself with you..."

Leaf paled.

"Don't you dare, Harry Potter!"

Harry laughed, giddy with his first capture.

"C'mon, let's get going. This hallway can't last forever."

Leaf steadied her breathing and nodded.

**000 Chapter End 000 **

Thank you for reading! If you liked this then please check out my other stories! If you would please review I would be grateful!

Next Chapter: Secrets Revealed

**Character Profile:** **Harry Potter **

**Age:** Eleven  
><strong>Height: <strong>Five feet, two inches.  
><strong>Goals:<strong> To find other wizards in the Poke-World. Training Pokemon is secondary to that

**Harry's Party:  
><strong>Name: Charmander  
>Species: Lizard Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: Fire<br>Nature: Rash  
>Ability: Blaze- Powers up Fire-type moves in a pinch<br>Original Trainer: Harry  
>Received From Professor Oak<br>Nickname: Cendio  
>Moves Known: Scratch, Ember, Growl, Metal Claw.<p>

Name: Gastly  
>Species: Gas Pokemon<br>Gender: Male Type: Ghost/Poison  
>Nature: Naughty<br>Ability: Levitate- Gives full immunity to all Ground-type moves.  
>Original Trainer: Harry<br>Caught in the Viridian City Underground  
>Nickname: ?<br>Moves Known: Hypnosis, Lick, Night Shade, Mean Look.


	3. Secrets Revealed

AN: If it's not obvious, I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon, that's why I post on a fanfiction website

**Chapter Three **

**Secrets Revealed **

**Viridian City Underground, Viridian City, Kanto **

Harry and Leaf entered a large atrium of natural stone. The manmade white walls had ended a few minutes previously and had turned to smooth brown rock. Stalagmites jutted from the floor and the slightest noise echoed loudly in the eerie silence.

In the middle of the cavern was a raised stone dais and standing atop that platform was James. He had an orange and black dog like Pokemon keeping the drafty room warm and lit.

Harry and Leaf extracted their Pokedexes from their pockets and they dinged with new information.

_Growlithe (F):  
>The Puppy Pokemon. Extremely loyal, it will fearlessly bark and bite at any opponent to protect its own Trainer from harm. Its superb sense of smell ensures that this Pokémon won't forget any scent, no matter what. It uses its sense of smell to detect the emotions of others. <em>

"Welcome!" exclaimed James jubilantly. "I want to thank you for following me down here. You see, while you waste time with me, my feline ally should be getting away with the Center's Pokemon."

"Are you going to monologue or are we going to battle!"

James chuckled at Harry's challenge.

"Of course we are," said James as though he was talking to a two year old. "I just want to tell you that you are going to be thrashed for no reason. We're still going to complete our mission."

Harry scowled and drew Gastly and Charmander's Pokeballs prompting Leaf to draw the two capsules containing her Pokemon.

"Come on, Cendio! Zeru!"

He threw the balls into the no-man's-land between their sides. Both Charmander and Gastly appeared in a burst of light. While the Fire Type snapped to attention at the sight of a confirmed enemy, Zeru looked around blankly and circled his trainer through the air. Harry was dimly aware of Leaf summoning Flora and Nico to battle, He was distracted by Gastly's wayward wandering.

"Really?" questioned Harry, his attention snapping back to the Poke-Terrorist. "It looks like it's four to two to me!"

James chuckled and tossed two Pokeballs into the air.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Misty's tired feet eventually carried her to what would have been a dead end but what was now a person sized hole in the wall. Moss grew over all the damp surfaces and the red-head's skin flushed and broke out in a cold sweat. The short hairs on the back of Misty's neck stood on end; something told the water trainer that she would have to fight soon.

Drawing the Pokeball containing Staryu, Misty stepped forward and entered another larger corridor. It was roughly ten feet to the other side of the hallway and between two sidewalk-like protrusions jutting from the wall was a fast moving river of cerulean blue water. The walls were curved and arched overhead and ivy hung from between the loose stones. Misty concluded that she must've hit the Aqueduct proper.

Looking in the direction of the water's flow, Misty saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Following the river for a moment revealed a large, tall, circular room lined with several stories of stone sidewalks leading into what could only be service tunnels. In the middle of the room was a massive brick funnel with a hole in the bottom where water that hadn't been used was diverted back to the river it had been drawn from. The water swirled around the hole like the drain from a massive sink.

"So," said a haughty voice, "someone did follow me?"

Misty's head snapped up, sitting on the sidewalk on the opposite side of the room and one floor above her was Jessie.

"Of course I followed you!" yelled Misty. "Did you think I would allow you to get away with attacking the Pokemon Center? This is a place of peace and you've destroyed that!"

"You realize that coming after me was a distraction, right?" Jessie stood and drew a Pokeball. "You and the other twerps left the Center unguarded, Meowth will still make off with the Pokemon and no one will be able to stop him!"

"Then I'll have to beat you and get back to the Center quickly!"

Misty tossed down her Pokeball while Jessie laughed and jumped to the first level and deployed her own Pokemon.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Ash watched as two Poke-SWAT Officers split off the main group and entered Nurse Joy's quarters as the others headed deeper into the center. The boy from Pallet heard a loud swear word followed by the release of a Pokeball, there was a few loud hisses and snarls then silence.

Intrigued, Ash looked around the Officer and nearly vomited; Nurse Joy's face and arms were covered in cuts and slashes, all bleeding freely. She was moaning weakly in pain as an officer attempted to treat the worst of her injuries. A second officer was using a walkie talkie to call for a medic and Meowth was slumped unconscious in a corner.

The second Officer saw Ash's white face and hurried him out of the room and back to the main lobby. Passing the doors to the ICU, his thoughts turned back to his own injured Pokemon and he squinted in thought. Shrugging, he entered with the intent to find his Pikachu.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Jenny and her team came upon the kicked in door and stopped. The other two Officers looked to her for guidance and she nodded before descending the stairs. A few minutes later, the team approached the split in the hallway, their eyes constantly worked their way around the room, scanning for threats.

"Okay," hissed Jenny, "I'll take the Underground, I want you two to take the Aqueducts." Jenny must've read their expressions because she pointed at the smudge of lipstick. "Look, Jessie must've gone that way! We all know how vicious she is; she's just as likely to attack an enemy trainer instead of their Pokemon! The kid who went after her doesn't know what they're getting themselves into!"

Jenny's subordinates nodded and snapped off a salute before they called out several large orange and black, canine-like Pokemon to use as mounts.

Jenny nodded to herself as she saw her team of Poke-SWAT speeding off to to the aid of a child and the hopeful capture of one of Kanto's most wanted. Pulling out her own Pokeball, she summoned another canine Pokemon which dropped to the ground, allowing her to mount his back.

"Let's go, Arcanine!"

The Pokemon shot off at an impressive speed.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

James' Pokeballs hit the floor and unleashed a burst of light revealing Koffing and a Pokemon that looked like an upside-down flower bulb with two ear-like leaves.

Leaf and Harry whipped out their Pokedexes.

_Weepinbell (M):  
>The Flycatcher Pokemon. It's prey is larger than it's mouth, it slices up the victim with sharp leaves and then eats every morsel. <em>

The seven Pokemon faced off against each other for several seconds. Cendio and Zeru with Flora and Nico on one side. While James' Koffing, Growlithe, and Weepinbell were on the other. Harry's team had the advantage in numbers but both sides knew that James had more experience when it came to battles. The only thing that kept Harry's confidence up was the fact that he had his magic to fall back on. The wizard looked to Leaf and frowned when he saw her shaking slightly, Harry silently promised to protect her should their Pokemon not be enough to deal with James.

"Cendio!" Ordered Harry, kicking off the battle. "Aim an Ember at Weepinbell! Full power!"

Charmander nodded and the blaze at the tip of his tail doubled in size. Whipping his tail, he sent a blaze at the Flycatcher Pokemon.

"Growlithe!" shouted James at the same time Leaf ordered her party to attack. "Block the Ember with your own! Koffing, use Toxic!"

"Use Focus Energy, Nico! Followed by Doublekick on Growlithe! Flora, Sleep Powder on Koffing!"

Four Pokemon moved in unison; Growlithe jumped in front of Weepinbell with her mouth open, building an orange flame. Landing, the Puppy Pokemon sent her own bolts of fire to block the incoming attack.

"Kof-Koffing!"

Purple sludge dripped from the pores dotting the Poison Gas Pokemon's surface where it formed into a slimy sphere. Somehow, the Pokemon with no hands managed to fire the ball of goo into the midst of Leaf's team drenching the floor with viscous ooze.

Nico, dodged the toxic slime and clenched his muscles. Steam rose from it's tiny body and the ground cracked with the little beings power. The Nidoran dug it's heels into the ground and shot forward, charging the Puppy Pokemon. It jumped at the last second and turned in midair, striking at Growlithe's flank twice and shoving it to the ground before jumping back to Leaf's side with an exclamation of his species.

Bulbasaur was not able to dodge the Koffing's attack totally and took a a splash of disgusting slime on her side. Shaking off the majority of what hit her, Flora reared back and released violet spores from the closed flower on her back that circled around the Poison Gas Pokemon's body.

Harry and Leaf smiled when the Koffing sank to the floor, asleep.

"Attack Growlithe with Nightshade, Zeru! Cendio! Use Metal Claw on Weepinbell!"

"Weepinbell! protect Growlithe," snapped James. "Use Razor Leaf on Nidoran and Gastly!"

"Nico! dodge and then Poison Pin on Growlithe! Tackle Weepinbell, Flora!"

Gastly had time to land his invisible attack on the Fire type before he dropped to the ground, his main body sliced into two parts by leaves sharper than swords.

Time seemed to slow for Harry as he whipped out the Ghost type's Pokeball. Recalling his newest Pokemon, Harry turned back to the battle; Nico, who's muscles were still pumped up, had managed to dodge the leaf meant for him and both Flora and Cendio's attacks had hit, knocking out the Weepinbell. A second later, Growlite succumbed to Nico's poison, knocking the Puppy Pokemon out.

Just when victory seemed at hand, Koffing woke up and James physically threw him into the midst of Leaf's team.

"Koffing! Use Self Destruct!"

The Poison Gas Pokemon started glowing and then there was an explosion with the force of a small concussive bomb. When the dust cleared, both of Leaf's Pokemon as well as Koffing were knocked out and she had been thrown into a chamber wall and slumped, unconscious on the floor, blood seeped from a cut on her head.

Something in Harry snapped. He had, of course, changed into his animal form before, but it had always been a smooth transition; one second he was a human the next he was an animal with his human mind. It was not so this time. His transformation ripped through his body slowly, rearranging muscle, bone, and sinew into a new shape.

Harry's grasp on Zeru's Pokeball slipped and the capsule fell on it's open button, releasing the Ghost Pokemon. He dropped to all fours, and shrunk slightly. Thick black hair sprouted from his arms, and back. His clothes sank into his body and his face elongated into a muzzle. His eyelids opened revealing toxic green eyes and his already sensitive senses sharpened even further. A gentle breeze ruffled his thick black fur and he looked at James with murder in his eyes.

Harry was now Alpha, a northern wolf.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

After only a few minutes of searching, Ash had found the room his Pikachu was resting in. Entering, he gently rubbed the top of the electric mouse's head in an effort to rouse his starter.

"Pi..Ka..Chu..."

The little yellow rodent opened his black eyes and looked at his trainer, the first human he had ever liked, and started struggling in his bed linens.

Seeing this, Ash rushed forward and unwrapped his Pikachu before gathering him in his arms.

"C'mon buddy, let's get out of this crazy place!"

Pikachu nodded into Ash's shoulder.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

James was doing something he normally didn't do. He was thinking back on his life and questioning his choices and how they led to his current predicament. Because, at the moment, the twerp James had been fighting had changed into a five-foot-long canine-like Pokemon he had never seen before. As if this was not bad enough, the boy was looming over his downed form and had inch-long fangs pressed to his neck. James' only saving grace was that he could see the hesitation in the Pokemon's eyes.

Of course, he was skipping a few events.

_James watched as the Twerp changed, a feeling of dread and amazement warring in his stomach. _

_The head of the beastly, canine Pokemon snapped up and he opened his eyes, toxic green glared into scared brown. Suddenly, there was a rumbling growl that filled the atrium and knocked dust from the ceiling. The Pokemon clenched the muscles in it's legs and shot off like a bullet. _

_It was all James could do to get to his downed Growlithe and give her a super potion. Growlithe jumped up and saw the threat to her Trainer. Growling, the Fire Type lanced at the large Alpha. _

_Teeth bared, the canines collided with a fleshy smack. Claws raked skin and the Puppy Pokemon brought it's head back and built a fire in it's mouth. Growlithe clamped it's muzzle around Alpha's neck with a powerful Fire Fang attack. _

_Whimpering in pain, an invisible force lashed from Alpha's body, throwing Growlithe to the other side of the cavern. Somehow, the pain managed to allow Harry to assert some control over Alpha and he mentally shouted "Incendio!" A powerful swath of flame surrounded the Puppy Pokemon, burning her despite the type disadvantage. _

_Growlithe fell with a whimper and Harry, warring with his primal side, turned to the Poke-Terrorist. Narrowing his eyes, Alpha/Harry lunged for James and tackled him bodily to the floor. Wrapping his mouth around James' neck, Harry fought Alpha's primal instinct with human intellect. _

James' gulped, somehow, he knew that, should he try to fight, the canine-like Pokemon would tear through his throat.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Jessie's Pokeball hit the floor and opened, revealing a large, chubby, pink Pokemon in a flash of light. It's mouth seemed incapable of closing around a large, prehensile tongue.

"Go! Staryu! Use Watergun!"

The top-most arm of the Starshape Pokemon bent and a powerful gout of water shot from the tip.

"Dodge it, Lickitung! Then use Slam!"

Lickitung jumped to the left in time to avoid the burst of high-powered water. His tongue shot from his mouth and was able to grasp the Starshape Pokemon around the middle. Lickitung flexed his tongue and squeezed Staryu painfully. Lifting the Water type into the air, Lickitung slammed it's opponet into the ground, before releasing it and retracting it's tongue.

"Staryu!" shouted Misty, noticing that the Starshape Pokemon was close to water's edge, "use Refresh! Then Swift!"

Staryu straightened and dipped one of it's appendages into the fresh water. Absorbing some, the Water type was surrounded by bubbles, leaving it clean, shiny, and no worse for wear. Quickly turning to Lickitung, Staryu's Core started shining before it formed dozens of glowing stars which lanced at the Normal type like gleaming shuriken. Lickitung, not having time to dodge, braced himself and took the attack head on. There was an explosion and when the dust cleared, the Licking Pokemon was only scuffed slightly.

"What are you doing?" exclaimed Jessie, stomping her booted foot on the ground in indignation. "Fight back, Lickitung!"

Smirking as much as a being with a twelve-foot-long tongue can smirk, Lickitung leapt across the Aqueduct's drain. Landing, his fist began glowing and he lashed out with a solid Mega Punch. Staryu was thrown away from it's trainer's foe and slowly faded from consciousness.

Misty had just enough time to recall her injured Pokemon before she was forced to dodge a whip of Lickitung's tongue that created a back draft and left a deep gouge in the stonework floor.

"Go!" shouted Misty, recovering her footing while reaching into a back pocket and drawing two Pokeballs, "Goldeen! Starmie!"

A two-foot-long, orange and white, goldfish-like Pokemon with a horn on it's head burst from the Pokeball and dived for the swirling vortex of water a foot from her left while the evolved form of Staryu stood sentinel infront of their trainer.

"Goldeen, Horn Attack! Starmie, Ice Beam!"

"Ekans," hissed Jessie quietly, "now!"

Goldeen, who had been under the water circling the drain, burst from the water at her top speed and aided by the current of the water and stabbed the Licking Pokemon in the back with it's powerful horn. The Goldfish Pokemon flopped back into the water in time for the jet of Starmie's ice attack which froze all in it's path, Including Lickitung and his trainer.

Misty sighed and recalled her Goldeen, only to let out a muffled scream as a pair of five-inch-long fangs pierced her side, directly underneath her ribs.

Starmie reacted without command to protect it's trainer and froze Ekans with an Ice Beam.

Misty grasped at her side and winced. Her breaths coming out in shallow gasps, she slowly shuffled her way to the wall where she collapsed in a pool of her own blood.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Leaf groaned and sat up. Rubbing her aching head, she blearily looked around. The first thing she noticed was her injured Pokemon. Hastily taking out their Pokeballs, she recalled them so they could be held in stasis until she could get them healed.

The next thing she noticed was Harry's Pokemon staring wide-eyed at the Dias that James had been standing on. Shifting her line of sight, her own eyes widened; A large, black-haired Pokemon had James' neck in it's mouth and looked to be a second from ripping it out. She nearly screamed at the sight of a wouldbe massacre when she caught a glimpse of the beast's eyes; one was a toxic, acidic green and the other was the clear, emerald orb of her newest friend.

"H-Harry?"

She stood and wobbled on her feet, hobbling to Harry's Pokemon she turned to Cendio.

"I-Is that Harry?"

Charmander nodded, never taking his eyes off his transformed trainer.

"How?"

Leaf noticed Harry's jaw tightening and saw James gasp.

"No..." She shook her head in denial. "You can't... It's not right!" Leaf darted forward, not sure what would become of herself. "Harry! Stop! Harry!"

Alpha/Harry's ears perked up and he momentarily slackened his grip.

"Harry, please!"

Harry/Alpha dropped James' neck and turned to the frantic voice of his only human friend. There was a low, grumbling growl and the canine features slowly faded away and the Pokemon shakily turned back into Harry.

Leaf gasped; as a Pokemon, the damage hadn't seemed that bad. But as a human, the girl could tell that Harry was seriously injured. His clothes, what little he had been wearing, were torn and burnt to tatters. On his shoulder was what looked like a half-cauterized bite mark that was bleeding freely. He had several deep cuts on his ribs. His breathing was labored and he seemed to be fighting to remain standing.

Leaf rushed to Harry's side and threw his good arm over her shoulder while James rubbed his bruised neck and tried to scoot away. Leaf was surprised when, even in his weakened state, Harry noticed this.

"Cendio!" said Harry, his voice coming out in ragged gasps. "Keep him captive!"

Harry was vaguely surprised when not only Cendio, but Zeru as well rushed to follow his order.

"Harry, what was that?"

"Not now," rasped Harry, his breath shallow, he extracted a thin stick of wood from pocket in his tatty bathrobe and started dragging it across the wound on his shoulder. _"Vulnera Sanentur... Vulnera Sanentur... Vulnera Sanentur..." _Chanted Harry over and over again. Leaf turned astonished eyes to Harry's face when she saw his injury go from fresh and seepy, to red and raw, and finally to scarred and bumpy. Without making eye contact with Leaf, Harry quickly healed his other, more minor, injuries.

In the blink of an eye, Harry repaired his bathrobe before turning to his captive. Moving stiffly, Harry crossed the dais and knelt before James who was suddenly looking paler than usual.

"I'm sorry for having to do this," said Harry, pointing his stick between James' eyes, "but it's necessary. _Obliviate!_"Harry turned his stick like he was locking a door and James' face went slack. Harry stood and silently made a jet of red light shoot from the tip of his stick and the Poke-Terrorist slumped unconscious to the floor. He flicked his wand and said,_ "Incarcerous!" _Thin cords burst from the tip of his stick and tied themselves around James tightly.

Harry held up his left hand and somehow the Pokeballs for his respective Pokemon flew from the floor of the cavern and landed in his grasping hand. The Boy Trainer recalled his party and, for the first time since he changed back, he turned to Leaf and looked her in the eyes.

She could see fear warring for longing in his emerald orbs. Fear of rejection, of damnation. But what did he want? Friendship? Companionship? Someone he could tell what was obviously a secret to?

"What was that?" repeated Leaf. "I've never heard of a Psychic who could do what you can."

Harry cocked an eyebrow at the word 'Psychic' but shook his head to clear it.

"I promise I'll tell you everything, Leaf, just not here and not now," pleaded Harry. "Please, trust me, Leaf."

"What did you do to James?"

Harry looked uncomfortable.

"I-I made him forget... When he wakes up, he'll think that he was knocked unconscious by a backfired attack."

Leaf's eyebrows met her hairline, they rose up so sharply.

"I don't like having to do it but it is necessary," defended Harry. "People can't know what I am, what my family is."

"Then why aren't you going to make me forget like you did James?" accused Leaf, making Harry wince. "People can't know, right?"

"I won't make you forget because I like you." Seeing Leaf beginning to blush he cocked an eyebrow and thought back on what he said. Blushing himself, he amended, "you're my only friend. Human friend."

Leaf nodded to herself, her rosy cheeks slowly going back to normal.

"And you'll tell me who and what you are?"

Harry nodded solemnly.

"Everything, we just need to get out of here unseen and get our bags. Then we make for Viridian Forest tonight."

Leaf nodded slowly and tilted her head when she saw Harry reach down and pluck a rock off the ground. He tapped it with his stick and muttered something that sounded like, _"Porkis,"_ making the rock glow blue.

"Here," said Harry, holding the still-glowing rock out to her, "touch this."

Slowly, hesitantly, she held out her right hand and tapped the rock with her index finger, only to scream in surprise when she felt a tugging at her navel before she was sucked through a vortex.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Officer Bar and his partner Officer Brady entered the Aqueduct's Drainage Facility and gasped. Frozen in slowly melting ice was one of Kanto's Most Wanted and two of her confirmed Pokemon. The child who had confronted her was slumped against a wall covered in blood and a Starmie hovered over her protectively.

Bar and Brady cautiously approached the Water type.

"Hey there, fella," said Brady, holding his hands up in a soothing manner. "We're not going to hurt ya, or your trainer."

Bar nodded encouragingly.

"We want to help."

Slowly, the Mysterious Pokémon move away and allowed one of the to law enforcement officers to aid his trainer while the other called for back up; they'd need a cart to pull Jessie and her Pokemon.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Officer Jenny was confused, and that was something she wasn't used to. Ever since she had been a kid she had been very sure of herself, some might call her overconfident but she knew better; she was convicted.

That was why she was surprised to find herself confused at what she was seeing.

She had entered the natural atrium expecting to see either an ongoing battle or the kids who followed him at his mercy. But what she saw was the exact opposite; James was tied up with cords and his Pokemon were all knocked out around him.

Snapping out of her stupor, Jenny used three Police Issue Snag Balls on his three Pokemon and approached James. She checked his pulse and nodded to herself. Using her shoulder mounted Radio, she called for suspect transport and looked around; she wondered where the kids who followed him were. They couldn't have gone back the way they came in because she hadn't seen them, and they had no reason to head deeper into the Underground...

Jenny found herself intrigued and assured herself she would get to the bottom of this.

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Harry and Leaf appeared in their rented room in a burst of blue light.

"What," wheezed Lead, "was that?"

"Portkey," said Harry while shuffling to his bag and gathering a change of clothes. "It's an object enchanted to transport one or more people to a specified location upon activation."

"Wait a second," mumbled Leaf, rubbing her head. "When you say, 'enchanted,' you mean mag-"

"-Magic?" said Harry. "Yes, I am a Wizard, a person born with the ability to alter reality with nothing but a few magic words and the proper intent."

"But magic doesn't exist!"

Leaf looked close to a mental breakdown.

Harry grinned and waved his hand, causing her bag to fly to her hands.

"Psychics can do that though..."

Harry rolled his eyes in response and, with a flick of his wand, he changed her bag into a black and gray cat which she dropped in surprise.

"Y-you turned my supplies into a Pokemon..."

"Not a Pokemon," instructed Harry. "A tabby cat. It's an animal from my original dimension."

Leaf looked close to fainting at the words 'original dimension,' and with another flick of his wand, he changed the cat back into her pack.

"How..." asked Leaf weakly.

"Later," said Harry impatiently, heading for the bathroom. "We need to get dressed and make for the forest and my home."

**000 0000 000 **

Twenty minutes later, Harry was leading Leaf out of the Pokemon Center under a heavy Disillusionment Charm and Harry was thankful the gale had become naught but a light drizzle. After getting a few blocks from the cordoned off Center, Harry led Leaf into an alley way and lifted the charm, canceling the chameleon like effect cloaking the preteens from sight.

Harry was wearing a pair of white shorts held up by a brown belt, a light green tee-shirt with dark green accents on the sleeves and collar, and a blue and white striped hooded jacket that was zipped half-way up. A pair of blue and brown tennis-shoes rounded out his outfit.

Leaf was dressed similarly to how she looked earlier, sans sunhat. Her tank top was a dark purple and her tight undershirt was white. she had a black skirt on and the same shoes with red socks and wrist straps. Her hair was tied in a ponytail with a red and purple striped scrunchi.

Exiting the alleyway, the two quietly yet quickly made their way to Route Two, the short path leading to Viridian Forest. Harry was relieved when it only took ten minutes of skulking around the back roads of Viridian to reach the City's edge on Route Two.

Harry's sigh of relief was cut short when he heard a car pull up and an increasingly familiar voice's shout of, "Hey, Loser's!"

In a move so perfect it could've been planned, Harry and Leaf pinched the bridge of their noses at the same time.

"Gary," they said in painful unison.

Apparently, he was thrown off by their greetings because he shook his head and pulled out a Pokeball.

"Alright, loser's. I want a rematch before I enter Viridian Forest! I'll use two Pokemon!"

Hary sighed and looked to his tired friend who nodded at him, he stepped forward while drawing a Pokeball.

"It's just me this time, Gary!"

The brown haired boy smirked and tossed his Pokeballs, "Go, Squirtle!

"Zeru! I summon you!"

Unnoticed by all, Leaf twitched at the word, 'Summon.'

The Tiny Turtle and Ghost Pokemon stared each other down while their trainer's waited for some unknown signal.

A larger-than-average drop of water splashed on Harry's forehead and started the battle.

"Zeru, phase behind him and use Nightshade! Then Hypnosis!"

"Squirtle, turn around and use Bubble!"

Zeru sank into a shadow and flitted behind Squirtle. His eyes widened and he dropped the Tiny Turtle with an invisible attack. Squirtle's explosive bubbles passed through Gastly's still phased form. Smirking, Zeru put Gastly to sleep with a burst of psychic power.

Gary scowled and recalled his slumbering Pokemon.

"Go, Pidgey!"

"Good job, Zeru! Come on back and have a rest!" Harry thrust his Pokeball forward and withdrew his snickering Ghost type with a beam of red light. He minimized the Pokeball and stuffed it in his hoody's pocket while at the same time drawing Charmander's capsule. "Cendio! Come on out!"

Flying and Fire faced off before Gary led the round.

"Use Gust, Pidgey!"

The Tiny Bird Pokemon lifted into the air and rapidly flapped it's wings kicking up a whirlwind of gale force wind that carried enough water from the air and pavement to become a miniature cyclone.

Harry's eyes widened.

"Dodge it, Cen! Then use Metal Claw!"

Charmander waited until the combination Flying/Water attack was nearly upon him when he jumped to the left and shot forward, his claws glowing.

Harry could tell that Gary was surprised at the effect his Pidgey's gust attack had because he wasn't paying attention when Cendio jumped and raked his shining talons across Pidgey's breast, ending the battle in a 0-2 sweep.

"Yes!"

Harry summoned Zeru and managed to hug his two Pokemon despite one of them being a poisonous shroud of living gas. He was so happy he won his first solo Trainer battle that he didn't see Gary's approach until the brown-haired bow was right in front of him.

Standing so he was face to face with the smarmy boy, Harry waited for Gary to say something.

"That's two times you've beaten me. From now on, I consider you my true rival."

Harry raised an eyebrow while Leaf gasped.

"What..." said Harry, shaking his head. "How stupid, make Ash your Rival."

Gary scoffed and Harry suddenly turned serious.

"Don't take him lightly, Gary. I have a feeling that one day, when the chips are down, when it truly matters, Ash will really surprise you."

"Whatever," said Gary divisively.

Harry was about to retort when a flash of yellow light distracted him and the sound of an explosion boomed from the Pokemon Center, popping his ear drums.

"What was that?" yelled Gary, not that Harry could hear him through his ringing ears.

"It came from the Pokemon Center!" yelled one of the cheerleaders from Gary's Corvette. Gary ran to the car and jumped in while a black-haired cheerleader revved the engine and took off at speed to investigate the noise.

Harry looked ready to follow him when Leaf grabbed the back of his shirt.

"What was the point in sneaking out of there if you just go charging back in?"

Harry sighed, his saving people thing had kicked in and nearly overridden his common sense.

"You're right," said Harry and Leaf released his grasp on Harry's jacket. "C'mon let's go."

**000 Perspective Shift 000 **

Ash Ketchum sat on the front steps of the Pokemon Center telling his Pikachu about the events of the night. He had been kicked out of the lobby when Misty had been brought up covered in blood. Jessie and James came up mere moments later in carts pulled by Pokemon his Pokedex identified as, _'Arcanine.' _He had been curious because Jessie was frozen in a rapidly melting block of Ice and James was tied in cord that he was sure no one had been carrying on their entry into the ICU.

Sighing, he wrapped up his tale to an astonished Pikachu and they sat in silence, a new understanding forming between them; they would no longer be Trainer and Pokemon, Master and Pet, They would be friends, first and foremost.

A commotion drew their attention back to the Center proper and they stood abruptly when they saw it's cause. Jessie had thawed enough to move and had freed James. They snuck up on the Officer holding their Pokemon and attacked him, stealing them back, and were now heading to the main entrance at a sprint, James carrying Meowth over his shoulder.

They burst from the door and knocked Ash down the steps tossing Pikachu high into the air where he readied a Thunder Shock in the red pouches on it's cheeks. The air must've still been charged with electricity from the storm because Pikachu's basic attack was super powered to the level of a Thunder attack.

James and Jessie were apprehended seconds after being struck by lightning muttering about 'unnaturally strong rodents' and 'telling the Boss.'

Standing quickly, Ash was able to catch his unconscious Pokemon before he hit the ground. Shaking his head, Ash headed back into the Center pondering on how powerful his starter seemed to be.

**000 Chapter End 000 **

**Author's Note:** If it's not obvious, I took a lot of inspiration from the manga, Pokemon Special. If you haven't read it yet, I recommend that you grab a sandwich and a tasty beverage and Google it. You're in for a whole lot of awesome.

**Police Issue Snag Balls** are special Pokeballs that allow the wielder to hold another's Pokemon in stasis for transportation. Police use them in cases where criminals have used Pokemon for evil.

**Character Profile: ** **Leaf Green**  
><strong>Age:<strong> Ten  
><strong>Height:<strong> four feet, eleven inches  
><strong>Goals: <strong>Like many new trainers, Leaf wants to become Champion of the Indigo League and be a great Pokemon Master.

**Leaf's Party:  
><strong>Name: Bulbasaur  
>Species: Seed Pokemon<br>Gender: Female  
>Type: Grass<br>Nature: Relaxed  
>Ability: Overgrow- Powers up grass-type moves in a pinch.<br>Original Trainer: Leaf  
>Recieved From Professor Oak.<br>Nickname: Flora  
>Moves Known: Tackle, Leech Seed, Sleep Powder, Growl<p>

Name: Nidoran (M)  
>Species: Poison Pin Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: Poison<br>Nature: Bold  
>Ability: Rivalry- Raises attack if the foe is of the same gender.<br>Original Trainer: Leaf  
>Caught on Route One.<br>Nickname: Nico  
>Moves Known: Peck, Focus Energy, Double Kick, Poison Sting<p> 


	4. A brief Respite

AN: If it's not obvious, I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon, that's why I post on a fanfiction website

**Chapter Four **

**A Brief Respite **

**Late Night **

**Viridian Forest **

It was nearly three o'clock in the morning when Harry led Leaf into the clearing where his family had set up a simple three-floor cottage. For the past several hours, the boy wizard had answered question after question about everything from the extent of his powers to how and why his family changed dimensions and about the Pokemon on his world. It had taken the dimensional hopper thirty tedious minutes to make Leaf believe that there were no Pokemon on his first Earth.

"So let me get this straight," said Leaf. "Your magic using mom _invents _a way to travel to a different dimension because some old woman said something in a raspy voice!"

"Hey, don't look at me! I think prophecy's a bunch of hogwash but the Dark Lord she mentioned apparently did believe in it. The psychopath had already murdered hundreds of people and ordered the deaths of thousands more. He didn't really care if he had to kill one or two families to assure his bloody immortality!"

Leaf shivered at the thought of all the death one man (monster, really) can cause.

They walked in silence for a while, Leaf thinking about all she had learned and Harry reveling in the solitude.

"Harry?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you ever think about what it would be like had you stayed in this 'England' place?"

"I used to," sighed Harry. "I would think and worry over my role in the prophecy. I mean, what if it was meant to be me! What if I was supposed to kill the madman and by my family's flight, we doomed an entire world of people! It got so bad that my dad pulled me aside and wheedled what I was bothered over out of me. And ya know what he did?"

Leaf shook her head, curious.

"He laughed. And I had a burst of accidental magic that turned his hair into snakes that would nip at his nose and ears. It stayed like that for nearly a month and mum made him sleep on the couch because she didn't want to get bit."

Leaf giggled.

"He and mum had thought long and hard on that very same subject while they were planning our escape. The answer they came up with was that, if I was the boy of prophecy, someone fated to fight the darkness, then something unexplained would have to happen to keep me there. Since it worked and I am here, then I can't be the Chosen One."

Harry shrugged while Leaf nodded thoughtfully.

"Anyway," said Harry, reaching out to grasp the screen door handle. "Don't let on to the fact that you know what you do. I don't think they'll mind, but I would like them to think that I kept our most important secret longer than two days."

The brunette nodded with a smile and Harry opened the door once it registered his magical signature.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry was packing what he needed for a long journey, He and Leaf had stayed at his family cottage for two days. Long enough for the two to subtly rest after fighting Team Rocket in Viridian City. Somehow, his parents still didn't know anything about that, and Harry was determined to keep it that way. He suffered no delusions as to what his mother would do should she become aware that he fought a wanted terrorist, lost control of Alpha, and had to Obliviate someone during the first two days of his journey.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted by a peal of laughter from both his mum and Leaf. His parents, having had little contact with the outsiders, had taken to Leaf almost immediately. He had originally been worried that they would be upset at his late arrival, but if anything, his mother was overjoyed, if not a little bleary-eyed.

The young wizard shook his head; according to his dad, mum had gotten more affectionate and protective after hearing about the Prophecy. Add in pregnancy hormones and Lily Potter was a magical mother bear that could make the toughest Trainers stand down in fear. His father had been happy to see him but he was even more curious about Harry and Leaf's Pokemon but he tried to restrain himself so as not to raise the girl from Pallet's suspicion.

The dimension hopper snorted; Leaf was a masterful actress. His parents didn't have a clue that Leaf's knowledge about Magic had grown in leaps and bounds over the last few days. She had made it a habit to ask him questions about his abilities at every opportunity. He had eventually grown tired of her nagging and promised that he would loan her his theory of magic textbooks when they set out for their next destination, Pewter City, with the promise that she'd only read them when she was completely alone.

The boy wizard had asked her about her interest in magic, sparking an hour long discussion.

_"Why am I so interested in magic?" _

_Harry nodded, they had left the house soon after lunch using the excuse that they wanted to train alone with their Pokemon, so as to build trust with them. Harry got the feeling that his father didn't believe him judging by the leer in his eyes and the waggling eyebrows. _

_"Yeah, I mean, not to be rude or anything, but you'll never be able to do magic. You would've showed the signs growing up, accidental magic, and all that." _

_Leaf sighed. _

_"Harry, when we visited my mom before we left Pallet, weren't you wondering where my father was?" _

_Harry was thrown off balance by the abrupt change in conversation but nodded after a moment's hesitation. _

_"I figured that he was either working, or a Trainer on his own journey, or..." he hesitated, "something bad happened to him." _

_"It was the last one," Leaf sniffled, "My dad was Professor Oak's top aide. He was next in line to succeed him as the Premier Pokemon Professor when it happened. He was on an expedition in the north when he went missing." _

_Harry gulped and settled against a thick tree. _

_"Harry, both my mother and father were very powerful, very talented Trainers. They had traveled together and fell in love. When they were in their twenty's, they gave up the adventuring lifestyle and settled in Pallet Town because mom fell pregnant with me." _

_Leaf sank to the ground and leaned against the tree infront of Harry. _

_"Dad got a job at Professor Oak's laboratory, and was sent on many field assignments. Soon, he was a published scientist. Three years after I was born, he was on an expedition to a frozen tundra up north. We received an encrypted video e-mail a month before he was set to return. The experiments they had been working on had... destroyed the lab and escaped, the video was of my father's 'last moments.'" _

_"So everyone considers him dead, but mom and I think differently. You see, he had the team of Pokemon with him that he used when he fought in the Indigo league-" _

_"-Your dad fought in the Pokemon League?" _

_Leaf smiled. _

_"Mom too. It was how they met. They battled against each other in the finals twenty years ago and tied. That was when they started traveling together. A lot of people thought they were unbeatable when they fought side by side." _

_Leaf lost herself remembering the stories her mother had told her. _

_Shaking her head, she continued with her story. _

_"When the lab was searched, they found only the damage caused by the experiment escaping. If dad had died then he wouldn't have gone quietly, he'd have fought with everything he had, and there wouldn't have been a lab to search." _

_There was another moment of silence. _

_"That's why Gary is the way he is; his parents were both working under dad but they weren't Trainers, didn't have a Pokemon between them, so everyone counts them just as dead as my father. He used to be a nice boy. We were all great friends, Ash, Gary, and I. The three colors, Red, Blue, and Green." _

_She smiled at the memories but it soon slipped off her face. _

_"When his parents were reported dead, he changed. He started lashing out at us. He became a bully." _

_"That's your goal, isn't it?" Asked Harry after a moment of respectful silence. "To find your dad?" _

_Leaf nodded and suddenly grinned. _

_"I also want to become a Pokemon Master, beat the League, you know? Then I'll become a scientist like dad. Mom says I got his curiosity." _

_Harry returned her grin. _

_"So you're studying me?" _

_Leaf laughed. _

_"I wouldn't put it so bluntly, but..." _

Harry smiled and shook his head. He grabbed his belt; a special present enchanted by his father. It used selective Sticking Charms to hold up to six Pokeballs. On it he had three occupied, ping-pong sized balls; the morning after he and Leaf arrived, he had ventured into the forest to find himself a Grass type that could help against the Pewter Gym Leader's specialty, Rock types. Harry grinned as he thought back on his second successful capture.

_Harry ventured into the tall grass. Sure, Metal Claw and Nightshade were good attacks that would either cut through a Rock Type's defense or bypass it completely, but he would feel better with a Grass or Water type on his team. _

_So here he was, slowly shuffling on his knees in the dewy foliage trying to keep as quiet as possible while the pre-dawn chill cut through his clothes, numbing him to the bone. _

_He had been searching for a while, using Warming Charms to keep his unresponsive fingers moving. Deciding to head back to the cottage before someone woke to find him missing, he set off at a trot, only to trip on a green vine. Jumping up, he brandished Cendio's Pokeball and his wand. _

_"La-la-la!" _

_Harry heard a shuffling laugh to his right and spun in his heels only to see a green ball of moving vines with red feet. Harry could see large, circular eyes in a parting of the vines. _

_Harry stuffed his wand away and pulled his Pokedex. _

_Tangela (M- Shiny):  
>The Vine Pokremon. Tangela's vines snap off very easily when happens without pain, allowing it to make a quick getaway. New vines grow back over a twenty-four hour time period. <em>

_Harry grinned; it looks like he found his Grass type! _

_"Go, Cendio! Use Metal Claw!" _

_Charmander burst forth from his Pokeball with his claws already glowing. He swiped at Tangela's midsection but only ripped a few vines from it's body. _

_Tangela used his red feet as a spring board and launched itself a few feet backwards. Extending two vines from it's back, it whipped them one after the other. _

_"Dodge them, Cen!" _

_The Lizard Pokemon failed to dodge the whips and was knocked to the ground on the first strike and then lashed across the back with the second. _

_Gasping for breath, Charmander was dimly aware of his Trainer encouraging him to move. Shaking his head slowly, he slowly stood and took a balanced stance that would allow him to move quickly in any direction. _

_"Use Ember, Cen!" _

_Charmander twirled and snapped his blazing tail in Tangela's direction. _

_The Vine Pokemon had probably expected the fight to end when Charmander went down because it had used a few vines to fashion a swing, on which it was playing. At the apex of it's ascent, it was smacked in the everything with a ball of flame, knocking it to the ground where it rolled around trying to stifle it's burn. _

_Harry threw his empty Pokeball and waited. _

The boy wizard grinned and detached Tangela's Pokeball. Tapping the release button, he summoned the Vine Pokemon which appeared with an exclamation of it's species. Tangela, it appeared, had a happy-go-lucky personality that had reminded Harry of his mum's stories of the Rastafarians on the old world, adding in it's vines which looked like green dreadlocks, and Harry's nickname for the Vine Pokemon made a lot of sense. He was Rasta, the shiny Tangela.

Harry chuckled as he rubbed a purring Rasta's head, Leaf had not been pleased when Harry had returned during breakfast covered in mud and with a third Pokemon and had seen fit to give him angry glares for the rest of the meal. When Harry had approached his father to ask him why, James had laughed and simply said that he had a lot to learn about the female species.

Thoroughly confused, he cautiously asked his mother the same question and received a different but similarly troublesome answer.

_"Mum?" _

_Harry entered his mother's study after knocking softly on the frame of the open door. The room looked like a modern muggle office but Harry knew that it was just an illusion to keep Leaf from asking questions as to why her private space looked like a Halloween shop had exploded inside it. _

_"Yes, Harrybear?" _

_Harry cringed at the childish nickname but allowed his mother her moment of fancy; she was pregnant, after all. _

_"Do you know why Leaf keeps giving me the stink eye? It started during breakfast." _

_"Oh, Harry..." sighed his mother. "You have so much to learn. If you were going out to look for Pokemon then you should've asked her to come with you." _

_Seeing Harry's confused look, she sighed for a second time and continued. _

_"You both agreed to do this journey together and then you go off on your own to improve, leaving her behind. She probably feels a little betrayed and more than a little lonely, being away from her home for the first time. Harry, you have to understand that your new friend is a little girl. She's mature, to be sure, but she still has very sensitive feelings and if you're going to be traveling together, then you need to be more thoughtful." _

_Harry nodded slowly and left the illusioned study after giving a distracted thank you. _

It had taken a hour for Harry to find and convince Leaf that he both knew what he did wrong, that he was a prat, and that he was sorry. Of course, it hadn't helped that she didn't know what a prat was, considering it was slang from his old dimension.

Harry smiled and recalled his now sleeping Vine Pokemon. Slinging his rucksack over his shoulders, he left his room, flicking the light to the 'off' position. The boy wizard walked down the second floor hallway and knocked on the door to the previously unused guest room.

"Leaf!" called Harry. "you ready to go?"

"Just a minute!" came a muffled voice from beyond the wooden barrier.

Harry leaned against the wall opposite her door and waited. He was wearing a pair of black jeans tucked into dark brown boots, and a bottle green button up shirt. He wore his Pokeball belt draped on his hips, over his shirt so he could access them easily.

Harry was using his foot to tap out a vaguely familiar tune when Leaf exited her temporary room adjusting the strap on her pack. She was wearing a white sundress that ended at her knees and hugged her developing curves. Leaf wore matching sandals and a sunhat topped her head. Her dark brown hair was in a low ponytail except for a few loose strands that framed her face. A few days in the sun had given her a fine layer of freckles on her shoulders. She looked up at him and grinned.

"let's get going, Harry!"

Harry smiled in response and offered his arm with an exaggerated flourish, making Leaf giggle and curtsy.

The two descended the stairs, laughing all the way.

Unknown to Harry and Leaf, Lily Potter canceled a Dissilusionment Charm and a Scent-Masking Charm. She smiled softly and at the scene of her son and his little friend joking, a tear leaked out of her left eye. A second later, she wiped it away and silently cursed her pregnancy hormones for making her a weepy mess.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry and Leaf waved good bye as they crossed the invisible barrier that kept wild Pokemon at bay. Harry was surprised when he again escaped with very little fussing.

"So," said Harry, turning to Leaf with a smile, "to Pewter?"

Leaf nodded happily.

Harry grinned.

_'I guess this is the end of our brief respite... Gym Leader, I hope you're ready!' _

**000 Chapter End 000 **

**Author's Note:** Lots of character development in this chapter. How did you like Leaf's backstory? Too sappy? Has it been done before? Leave your thoughts in a review please!

**New Pokemon: **

Name: Tangela  
>Species: Vine Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: Grass<br>Nature: Jolly  
>Ability: Regenerator- Allows user to restore vitality upon switching out of battle.<br>Original Trainer: Harry  
>Caught in Viridian Forest.<br>Nickname: Rasta  
>Moves Known: Absorb, Vine Whip, Stun Spore, Confusion<p> 


	5. A Painful Lesson

AN: If it's not obvious, I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon, that's why I post on a fanfiction website

**Chapter Five **

**A Painful Lesson **

"Pikachu!"

Ash Ketchem ran forward and scooped up his injured Pokemon, forfeiting the official match.

"Come back when you're stronger!"

Ash looked up at the man he challenged. He had dark skin and squinty eyes and his black hair spiked in different directions. He was clad in an orange shirt, a green vest with many pockets and pouches, and a pair of dark brown jeans. This was the Gym Leader of Pewter City, Brock the Rock.

Ash stood, cradling Pikachu in his arms. "I'll be back! I'll make Pikachu stronger than your Rock types in just two days!" He turned around and ran to the Pokemon Center never hearing Misty's pained groan.

**000 0000 000 **

"We're here!"

Harry grinned at Leaf's endless enthusiasm.

"Hey!" said Harry suddenly. "that's Ash!"

Leaf followed Harry's line of sight and saw her childhood friend sprinting towards the Pokemon Center, his red and white vest was open and whipping behind him in a slipstream and he carried Pikachu in his arms.

"What's he done now?" sighed the brunette.

"And there's Misty."

Leaf looked to her right to see the red-haired girl they had fought alongside in Viridian City staring at Ash's retreating back, compassion and annoyance warring for dominance on her face.

"Hey," waved Harry as they approached the water trainer at a jog, "Misty!"

Misty turned to them and recognition flared in her eyes.

"Hi, guys. I was wondering where you went; you had me worried when the police couldn't find you in the Underground."

Harry waved off her comment and shrugged.

"We didn't really stick around," said Leaf, "we didn't want our parents called in, you know?"

Misty nodded, in commiseration.

"So, what happened with Ash?" asked Harry. "We saw him running to the Pokemon Center"

The annoyance that had faded during the course of their conversation flared up again.

"Oh, that idiot tried to use Pikachu against the Gym Leader's Rock types."

"What!" gasped Leaf. "Did he even teach his Pikachu any Steel type moves like Iron Tail?"

"No!" Misty sighed angrily. "That idiot got his Pokemon hurt because he didn't use his head, and then he yelled something about making Pikachu stronger than the Gym's Pokemon in two days!"

"What?" said Harry. "doesn't he know Rock and Ground types are strong against or completely immune to electricity?"

Misty shook her head.

"Who knows what goes on between that boy's ears..."

Misty sighed and shook her head.

"So, what's new with you?"

"We spent a few days at my family cottage in the forest resting after Viridian."

Misty nodded and looked over Harry's shoulder.

"It was good seeing you two, but I'm going to try to talk some sense into Ash. I'll let him borrow a water Pokemon, I don't think he'll say no to such a definite advantage. Are you two going to stay in town for a while?"

"Yeah," said Leaf, "we talked on the walk from the forest, and we'll take today to sure up our party with a little training and then we'll challenge the gym tomorrow." She looked at Harry who nodded. "And we'll stay to watch Ash's match, as well."

Misty smiled.

"Then I'll see you two later. Why don't we all head out to dinner? I'll tell Ash?"

Harry and Leaf smiled and voice their agreement. Shortly after, Misty left Harry and Leaf to their own devices.

"So, I was thinking that we should split up and do some independent training, meet at the Center in a few hours." said Leaf.

Harry cocked and eyebrow.

"After all the guff you gave me over training alone you want to do the same thing?"

"Oh, Harry," said Leaf as though the boy wizard was a three year old who had said the Earth was flat. "This is completely different; when you went off on your own you didn't tell anyone, so I couldn't train as well. Doing it this way means that we can both improve at the same time. Understand?"

Harry didn't but he nodded as though he did.

**000 0000 000 **

Leaf exited the town through the east gate leading to the plains of Route Three. Some kid had tried to stop her from leaving until she had a gym badge, but she had quickly trounced him in a battle and gone on her way.

It had quickly turned from a sunny morning to a brisk day, leaving Leaf wishing she had kept her jacket with her instead of depositing it in the room she and Harry had rented. Rubbing her arms to stave off a chill, she left the beaten path in search of more people to battle and Pokemon to catch.

Roughly twenty minutes later, she had found a sleeping Flying type that her Pokedex Identified as 'Pidgey.' Knowing that it wouldn't be right to catch a Pokemon that she hadn't defeated, she went on her way. Eventually finding a trail of sleeping Pokemon consisting of several Ratata and even more Pidgey's.

Following the odd path, she found a bunch of bushes that had been set up to look like a human concert hall. Curious, she drew Nico's Pokeball and ventured forth.

She parted the hedges and found a pink, round, Pokemon with big blue eyes, and cat ears. It had a curly shock of pale pink hair on it's head and stubby arms along with large, floppy feet.

She brandished her Pokedex which dinged.

_Jigglypuff (M):  
>The Balloon Uses it's alluring eyes to enrapture it's foe. It then sings a pleasing melody that lulls it's foe to sleep. <em>

Leaf grinned to herself, she was sure that a Pokemon that could put anything to sleep would be a perfect addition to her team.

"Go, Nico!" She threw her Pokeball. "Double Kick!"

The Nidoran burst from his capsule and immediately launched into a powerful kick headed for Jigglypuff's face and the Balloon Pokemon dodged to the side before aiming a punch at Nidoran's left flank.

"Jump, Nico! Then counter with Poison Sting!"

Nidoran quickly twisted and took a passing blow to his hind leg but finished his turn and jabbed at the Balloon Pokemon, venom dripping from his horn.

Jigglypuff's Pound attack had made him to over extend himself and he was hit with the poisonous horn under his arm, finally knocking him over. Jigglpuff lay on the ground, trying to move despite the poison coursing through his veins and was hit with a tossed Pokeball.

The ball wiggled three times before it went still.

"Yes!" Exclaimed Leaf, punching her hands into the air while jumping. Landing, she dropped to her knees and hugged Nidoran, being careful not to touch his horns and making the Poison Pin Pokemon blush slightly at his expressive trainer. "You were great!" said Leaf into Nidoran's ear. "Why don't you take a rest? We have to meet Harry, Misty, and Ash for dinner."

She tapped the flushed Pokemon with his Pokeball and sucked him inside. Standing, she skipped to her newest Pokemon and plucked his capsule from the ground. Holding it under her Pokedex, she checked his moves and profile.

Nodding to herself, she put Jigglypuff's ball into her bag and headed back to Pewter.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry and Leaf entered the restaurant a few minutes early. The boy wizard wore a pair of snug, black pants, a silver tee-shirt with the phrase: 'It's Magic!' scrawled across it, and his Pokeball belt. His wand was tucked away in an expanded pocket and he had a pair of dark purple shoes with black stripes. His black hair was as messy as ever and his glasses glinted in the overhead lighting. He wore a shiny watch on his wrist.

Leaf had on a dark green tanktop, a pair of tan short shorts, and pale blue socks. Her shoes were white and red and she had put her long chestnut brown hair into a ponytail that was held together with a green scrunchi. Her three Pokeballs were minimized and strapped to her left wristband.

The two new trainers heard a feminine voice to their left.

"Hey, Harry! Leaf!"

Turning their heads, they grinned. Misty sat at a corner table with a surly looking Ash waving at them.

The Water trainer wore a closed yellow vest that was short enough to show off her flat, slightly toned tummy, black short shorts and wristbands. She had knee length black boots and a yellow belt hanging off her hips with three Pokeballs attached via a strong magnetic strip. Her reddish orange hair was loose and seemed to naturally curl underneath her ears like a sort-of bobcut.

Ash wore a white tee-shirt tucked into light blue pants. He had open blue vest with black collar and sleeves and a black strap of cloth tied around his upper left leg. His now signature red and white hat was sitting on the table next to him; apparently, Misty had seen fit to scold and nag him into taking it off in the nice restaurant.

Pikachu sat at Ash's corner looking supremely confident.

Harry and Leaf walked to the table and took their seats at the square table, Leaf across from Misty and Harry parallel to Ash.

The quartet made small talk (Ash, a little sullenly) while they ordered their food and and waited

"So," said Misty, eating the first bite of her dinner, "How was your training, Leaf, Harry?"

Ash perked up as Leaf's grin widened.

"Really good! I caught a new Pokemon today. He should be able to help me beat the Gym tomorrow!"

Misty turned to Harry.

"Pretty good," said the wizard in hiding with a shrug. "All of my Pokemon know a move that can either bypass Brock's Rock types' defense or cut straight through it."

"Be careful," warned Ash, shaking his head, "Brock's pretty tough," he looked at Pikachu mournfully, "he beat my Pokemon easily."

Misty snorted.

"Yeah, but you forget one thing, Ash. These two are actually good at Pokemon battles."

"Oh yeah?" growled Ash, his hands clenching the sides of the table. "Well listen to this: All day we've been working to strengthen Pikachu's attacks!" The Electric Mouse perked up. "The day after tomorrow we'll sweep that Gym!"

Sparks flew from Pikachu's cheeks in agreement

Harry couldn't stand it anymore and he stood up.

"You idiot!" snarled Harry.

The restaurant went silent and Ash also stood and glared into Harry's face.

"What did you call me?"

"You're an idiot! It doesn't matter how much you strengthen Pikachu's electric attacks because Brock's Rock and Ground Types are all resistant or immune to electricity! You'll be doing nothing but getting your Pikachu hurt if you continue to challenge Brock with him!"

Ash's face went an ugly puce color as both Misty and Leaf looked at their respective traveling partners in concern.

"Use your head, Ash! What Pokemon do you have that can damage a rock?"

Ash said nothing and Harry/Alpha grabbed his shirt and growled, "Pokemon battle, you and me, right now!" Harry cracked his neck and was able to assert more control over his animal instincts when Leaf gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

Ash shook himself from Harry's loosened grasp and put his hat on backwards. He pulled a Pokeball as Pikachu jumped to his shoulder.

"Gentlemen, please!"

The occupants of Harry's table turned and looked at a short man in a black suit.

"If you must fight, then please head to the arena!" gasped the man.

"Wait," said Leaf, rubbing her temples, "You're not kicking us out?"

"Of course not," chuckled the man, "this is my restaurant: the Battle Cafe!"

The man snapped his fingers and stadium lighting illuminated a space that had been hidden in shadows, throwing an indoor arena into sharp relief. The arena was rectangular in shape and seemed to match the outside conditions with lots of hard packed dirt and rocks of varying size littering the battleground.

"Fine!" snarled Ash. "Three Pokemon each! First to have all Pokemon lose consciousness loses! We start in ten minutes!"

Harry and Ash grasped hands and squeezed, sealing the challenge, before separating and walking to their Trainer Areas, their respective traveling companion trailing after them after exchanging a commiserating glance.

**000 0000 000 **

At Harry's side, the boy wizard paced, trying to calm himself down. Ash was just going to get his Pokemon hurt if he didn't start fighting with his head.

"Well," thought Harry with a inward snarl to match his animagus form, "if he won't listen to words then I'll just have to teach him in a battle!"

"Harry..." murmured Leaf, stepping close to him and grasping his shoulders. "Calm down," she said firmly. "We don't want Alpha to make an appearance, do we?"

And just like that, Harry stilled and flashed his best friend a gentle smile, alleviating her worries.

"The challenge has been set!"

Leaf turned to the arena.

"Come on, Harry. It's time to fight!"

**000 0000 000 **

"The challenge has been set!" announced a tall man with brown hair. He looked very official wearing a black and white striped shirt with black pants. He had a whistle around his neck and two flags, one in each hand.

The few people who had not been paying attention all shifted in their seats and turned towards the arena in the middle of the restaurant.

"The challengers will now identify themselves!"

Both boys snapped to attention.

"Ash Ketchem of Pallet Town!"

"Harry Potter of the Viridian Forest!"

"The challenge is thus! Three Pokemon each! The first to make all the opponents Pokemon unable to battle is the winner!" He held up his flags. "And now, we start!" He swished his flags downwards and the combatants threw their first Pokeballs,

"Go! Butterfree!"

"Cendio! I summon you!"

Bug and Fire type stared each other down, waiting for a command while both trainer's listened to the Pokedex data for their opponents.

"Butterfree, use Gust!"

"Ember, Cen!"

Butterfree flapped his wings and kicked up a tornado of wind which picked up pebbles and dust and whipped them at the Lizard Pokemon. The flame on Cendio's tail doubled in size and he snapped it at Butterfree, sending a swirling tongue of fire at the Bug type.

"Dodge, Butterfree!"

But it was no good; Cendio's attack cut through the whirlwind of dusty pebbles and slammed into Butterfree's midsection before dispersing. Despite being the weakest of the direct fire attacks, it dropped the Flying/Bug type to the ground where it rolled around for a few minutes, suffering from a burn before it passed out.

"Butterfree is unable to battle, Charmander is the victor! The score is 1-0 in favor of the challenger, Harry Potter!"

Ash growled and recalled his Pokemon while Harry did the same, sans growling but with more praise.

"That's why you need to pay attention to your opponent's type!" shouted Harry. "Once you saw that I was using a Fire type, you should've switched to a Pokemon who's type was strong against my Charmander! If you didn't have a Water type on your team then you should've switched to a Pokemon who was neither strong nor weak against Fire! Always think about type, it should always influence which Pokemon you use!"

"C'mon Pikachu," growled Ash. "You're up!"

"Pika!"

The mouse-like Pokemon ran forward, electric streamers discharging from the red pouches on his cheeks.

"Let's do it, Rasta!"

Harry threw the Grass type's Pokeball, summoning it to the field of battle.

"Use Thundershock! Full power!"

"Extend two vines and turn it back!"

As the bolt of glowing, yellow electricity zeroed in on Tangela, the Vine Pokemon deployed two of of it's easily replaceable limbs in the shape of a capital, 'U'. One Vine caught the surge of electricity and the crowd watched, stunned, as the attack traveled along it's resistant body and burst out of the second vine, smashing back into Pikachu's face and sending him reeling.

"Follow it up with Vine Whip, Rasta!"

The same attack that had nearly brought down Cendio despite the type disadvantage lashed Pikachu across the stomach, doubling the mouse over in pain before a second vine struck the yellow rodent in the back of the head, smashing him into the ground with a fleshy smack and knocking the Pikachu out.

The ref took a moment to recover.

"Pi-Pikachu is unable to battle, Tangela is the winner! The score is 2-0 in favor of the challenger, Harry Potter!"

Ash ran forward and scooped Pikachu into his arms before jogging back to his Trainer Area. Carefully handing Pikachu to Misty, he watched, worried, as she administered a potion, rousing the Electric Mouse enough to confirm that he would be alright.

Ash cupped Pikachu's cheek and turned back to the arena.

"Ash, what are you doing?" said Misty desperately. "Stop this."

Ash shook his head resolutely and readied his last Pokeball.

"Remember, Ash," began Harry, shouting over the rowdy crowd, "that you don't always have to attack directly. If you can divert an enemy's attack, then do so! If you can use the environment against your opponent, then you should!"

Ash growled.

"It's up to you, Pidgeotto!"

Harry recalled his Tangela and praised him for a moment before deploying his Gastly.

"Let's do it, Zeru!"

Again, the Trainers listened to the Pokedex data before Ash led the battle.

"Quick Attack, Pidgeotto!"

"Phase out, Zeru, and counter with Hypnosis!"

The dual Flying/Normal type passed straight through the Ghost type fast enough to leave after images. Turning around, Zeru's eyes widened and the Gastly put the bird to sleep before Pidgeotto had the chance to slow down. The Flying type slammed into the ground and rolled, arse over teakettle, for a moment, before it stopped and lay, quite still, in the shadow of a boulder.

The Ref waited for a few seconds to see if Pidgeotto would wake before he raised a flag in Harry's direction.

"Pidgeotto is unable to battle, Gastly is the winner! The score is 3-0 in favor of the challenger!Harry Potter wins!"

Both Harry and Ash recalled their Pokemon before Harry slowly approached the Trainer from Pallet.

"I really was trying to help you, Ash." said Harry as he neared. "You can be a good Trainer if you fight with your heart but you can only be a great Master if you combine your instinct with your head." He was right next to Ash when he whispered: "You're not the one who suffers for your mistakes. If you keep failing, your Pokemon will lose faith in you! Sometimes, retreat is the better part of valor! Keep learning and take what I said seriously."

Ash grabbed Pikachu and roughly shouldered passed Harry before he ran for the exit and, for the second time that day, the Pokemon Center.

Misty stormed up to Harry, angry tears in her eyes. She pulled her hand back and slapped him full in the face, leaving a sharp ringing in his ears and a sting on his reddened cheek.

"What the Hell is wrong with you!" raged Misty.

Harry rubbed his swelling cheek before dropping his hand.

"He needed to learn," Harry said simply, "and it's better to learn those lessons early before bad habits form."

"And what gives you the right?" snarled the red head. "Huh?"

When Harry didn't answer, she stormed after her obviously upset friend.

"Harry!"

The boy turned at the voice and saw an obviously distraught Leaf running for him. Facing away from her, he exited the restaurant, scanned for looker's on, and turned into Alpha. Under the stars and moonlight, he ran to Route Three, feeling the wind in his fur.

**000 0000 000 **

Leaf slammed the door to the Battle Cafe open and looked around; the streets seemed to be deserted. Straining her ears, she heard nothing. Sighing, she looked to the dusty ground and her eyes widened; footprints! She could see where a pair of human shoe imprints ended and a pair of canine pawprints began in a seamless transition.

Grinning to herself, she took off at speed, determined to reach her distraught friend.

**000 0000 000 **

The doors to the Pokemon Center dinged and slid open, allowing a sweaty and panting red haired girl entrance. She saw Ash sitting on a bench in front of the doors to the ICU; he looked both depressed and pensive with his face to the floor while his hands were clenched into fists on his knees.

Misty cautiously approached and sat next to him and, for a while, neither spoke. For ten minutes, the silence stretched on until Ash spoke in a monotone.

"Nurse Joy says that all my Pokemon will be alright."

Misty smiled half-heartedly.

"That's grea-"

"-Apparently, Harry went easy on me. Joy said that the damage was severe enough to hurt them but not to do any permanent damage. He could've done worse, really pounded me into the dust, but it's like he said; he only wanted to teach me a lesson, he did it for my own good."

Ash shook his shaggy head and whipped his hat off so he could grab at his hair.

"It's made me think! I mean, what if it had happened away from a Pokemon Center? Or the other Trainer didn't hold back like him?"

The Water trainer put a tentative hand on Ash's arm.

"This is what you've been telling me all along, isn't it?"

Misty made a confused noise.

"That if I didn't use my head, my Pokemon would get hurt. Well it happened."

"Oh, Ash..." the petite girl's resolve broke and she pulled the black haired boy into a consoling hug.

**000 0000 000 **

Leaf followed the pawprints well into the night, passing through a field of lush vegetation and entering a small, privately owned wood. Trailing the pawprints, she heard a babbling brook that would've been louder but for the mournful howling drowning it out. It was the kind of noise that reverberates in someone's ribcage and brings tears to the eyes with it's utter melancholy.

Sniffling a bit, she followed the noise until she came upon a clearing in the foliage. Leaf gasped, Harry had found a beautiful spot to brood; he was sitting on his haunches on a small cliff overlooking a pristine lake. His soulful croon had called several types of Pokemon out of the surrounding darkness.

Slowly, Leaf shuffled to Harry's sprawled form and, when he didn't react to her presence, she sat beside him and waited. It was only a few minutes later when Harry's howling ceased and he shakily turned back into his human form.

"Harry," said Leaf quietly, not wanting to break the solitude between them. "What was that all about?"

Harry sighed and adjusted his position so he could rest his weary head on his bent knees. There was another silence while Leaf patiently waited for her answer.

"You know how my parents and I came here while fleeing from a war?"

The girl nodded.

"They trained me from a very young age to fight for my life should the Dark Lord ever find out where I am. Everything I said to Ash is true for dueling. Y'know, magical combat. A fire spell can be countered with a water spell or blocked or reflected with the correct shield. You should use the environment to your advantage -this is especially true for Transfiguration Masters like my father who can turn their surroundings against an opponent. If a wizard can't recover an advantage then we retreat until we can come up with a strategy -and believe me when I say that we wizards have many ways to run away and hide."

He took a deep breath.

"It was so easy to adjust those guidelines and many others to suit Pokemon battles that, when I heard how stupid Ash was being, I went a little berserk. That kid was going to get his Pokemon hurt or worse because he didn't use his brain to make the obvious choices."

The boy shook his head like a dog who wanted to dry off, locks of raven hair flying around madly.

"And I know I'm being obtuse and that he hasn't had anywhere near the amount of training I've had but it just irked me that he was being so half-assed with his Pokemon's well being that..." Harry let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, I've always thought that a having a team of Pokemon would be a huge responsibility. A decision that shouldn't be made lightly, something that needs to be prepared for, not rushed into blindly... People call you a Trainer but what you really are is a Commander or a Drill Sergeant for a platoon of soldiers..."

"Harry," said Leaf, a hitch in her voice, "Pokemon aren't soldiers, mercenaries, or tools for war. First and foremost they are our friends."

A Ratata scurried up to Harry with a berry in it's mouth and the boy wizard pat it on the head when it started eating next to him, it's tiny, purple face contorted in ecstasy at the sweet taste.

"I know," said the boy wizard, smiling slightly at the little Pokemon. "I think of all my Pokemon as my friends but that really only makes it worse. I want them to be the very best they can be because I can only see fire and destruction in my future. They need to be ready, be prepared. Whether or not Voldemort does indeed show up or I get to look for other magicals without interference doesn't really matter. There will always be conflict and I'll be a part of it."

Harry stared into the starry sky, his eyes looking vacant and glassy.

"It's just who I am, because I can't stand to let people with dark intentions advance their plots. In the long run, true peace happens so rarely and it must be protected with everything we have... Some of the stories my mum and dad have told me or what I've read in articles clipped from old newspapers about the last war used to give me nightmares but now I use them as motivation; As long as I breath I'll fight to keep the same from happening here. To this beautiful world."

Leaf was blinking tears out of her eyes at the end of Harry's speech.

"Then we better make the best of what peace we have," said Leaf, fighting to keep her voice steady. She leaned in and hugged Harry to her chest and together they watched the night sky until they fell asleep sometime after midnight, cuddled together with small smiles on their faces.

**000 Chapter End 000 **

**Author's Note**: Haha. Talk about a curbstomp battle, huh? Leave your thoughts in a review, please.

**Author's Note, the Second:** This is what happens when you raise your son to be a soldier/survivor beginning at the tender age of four, he becomes a major pessimist.

**Author's Note, the Third:** I don't want people thinking Harry's unbeatable or a genius or anything because of his training. He's just a kid who made a few logical connections between Magical Dueling and Pokemon Battles. He's far from perfect.

**New Pokemon:**  
>Name: Jigglypuff<br>Species: Balloon Pokemon  
>Gender: Male<br>Type: Normal  
>Nature: Relaxed<br>Ability: Friend Guard- Reduces damage done to allies.  
>Original Trainer: Leaf<br>Caught on Route Three  
>Nickname: (?)<br>Moves known: Sing, Pound, Defense Curl, Wish

Review Please!


	6. Jumping the First Hurdle

AN: If it's not obvious, I don't own Harry Potter or Pokemon, that's why I post on a fanfiction website

**Chapter Six **

**Jumping the First Hurdle **

_Last time: _

_"Then we better make the best of what peace we have," said Leaf, fighting to keep her voice steady. She leaned in and hugged Harry to her chest and together they watched the night sky until they fell asleep sometime after midnight, cuddled together with small smiles on their faces. _

**000 0000 000 **

The chirping of what sounded like an entire choir of Pidgeys, thought Harry, stretching, was a wonderful way to wake up. He had been dreaming of home and his mother's treacle tart when he had been roused gently from his soft spot of grass by the quiet cooing of the Bird Pokemon.

Finishing his stretch and after one more yawn, he stood and brushed off his pants. Shivering, he gently grasped Leaf's shoulders and nudged her.

"Mmmn..."

Harry smiled at the mewling noise but he knew how to wake her. His smile turned into a devious grin when he fell to his knees and got close to his friend's ear.

"Leaf! It's time to get our first badges!"

With the first word, the brunette jerked awake before losing her footing and falling over where she lay, sprawled, on the dewy grass.

"Huh..." said Leaf, her hair stuck at an absurd angle.

"C'mon Leaf, we got Gym battles today!"

The girl from Pallet shook her head, mussing her hair even more and clearing the sleepy fog from her mind.

"Wuh? Gym battles, where!" shouted Leaf blearily.

Harry laughed and stumbled his way down the bluff they had fallen asleep on.

"Come on!"

"Harry James Potter! You wait just one minute!"

Harry just laughed again.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry and Leaf jogged to the Pokemon Center. The prospect of a hot shower and a change of clothes driving them on. Leaf still hadn't noticed how absurd her hair look jutting out to one side and Harry was in no hurry to tell her. He had to avoid looking at her for fear of laughing and alerting her of her appearance.

Entering the nearly deserted Poke-hospital, the duo quickly made for their rented, yet unused, room. Leaf managed to beat Harry to the loo so the boy wizard was forced to wait as she claimed the first shower, but not before he barked out a laugh at the shrill scream when Leaf caught sight of her appearance in the wall mounted mirror.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry and Leaf exited their room adjusting their clothes. The boy wizard was wearing a crimson and gold tee-shirt with the profile of a lion over his heart, an unzipped white and black striped hoody, and a pair of dark gray jeans held up by his Pokeball belt and his black trainers. Leaf wore a pale purple tanktop, an unzipped pink hoody, and tan short shorts. Her hair was fixed in a ponytail and she had a pair of red and white trainers on her feet.

The duo of young trainers walked back into the lobby of the Pokemon center, laughing over their chances at Brock's Gym, when they collided with Ash and Misty, still wearing the same clothes from the dinner the night before. The jovial energy leaking from Harry and Leaf subsided at Ash's forlorn face.

"H-Hi Red," began Leaf, "good morning!" The brunette would've been more reassuring had her voices' pitch not risen three octaves during the course of her sentence.

Ash ignored Leaf and stared at Harry who stared right back, both of them ignoring the concerned looks emanating from their friends.

"Harry," said Ash in a dry, reedy voice. "I-I want to thank you."

Apparently, Leaf and Misty were not expecting that because their mouths dropped open in shock.

"You taught me a lesson," continued the boy from Pallet, who's voice had gone back to normal now that the hard part was over. "You taught me that I needed to use my brain in a battle, and that I needed to listen to the advice of my friends."

Pikachu, who had been sitting on Ash's head the entire time, nodded in agreement.

"I can't promise that I won't make mistakes anymore, but I can say that I'll do my best to think before acting."

Ash turned to the red headed girl.

"Misty, yesterday you said you'd let me borrow a Water Pokemon?"

She nodded, a small smile on her lips.

"Is the offer still open?"

Misty's smile widened.

"You bet! I have the perfect one in mind. I just need to put in a call to home and I'll have his Pokeball 'ported over!"

Misty then rounded on Harry and bowed sharply at the waist.

"I'm sorry for overreacting yesterday! I thought you were being hurtful on purpose and I should've known you'd be incapable of that. Please forgive me, Harry!"

Harry smiled and pulled Misty into a hug before gently putting her back at Ash's side.

"Of course I forgive you!" said Harry with a smile. "Now go call home. We have our Gym matches soon, if you're still coming then you need to move quickly!"

"We'll meet you there!" yelled Ash with a wave.

Misty and Ash grinned and made for the video phones by the Pokemon Transference Machine.

Shaking their heads, Harry and Leaf left the Center and walked to the Gym.

**000 0000 000 **

The Pewter City Gym was a tall building and stood imposing over many of the surrounding structures. It had thick granite walls, a flat roof, and tinted windows. Instead of grass, it's front garden was sandy and had sharp, obsidian boulders dotting it's corners.

"Shall we go?" asked Harry feeling a lot less confident now that he was here.

Leaf swallowed nervously but nodded silently all the same. At once, the two newbie Trainers stepped onto the path leading to the Gym's entrance.

The interior of the Gym was rather plain when compared to it's imposing facade. It had bare, sandy brown walls and security cameras that seemed to turn with the challengers. A large, circular desk sat in the middle of the room. It was manned by a teenage boy, perhaps thirteen years old, with spiky, black hair, brown skin, and slitted eyes. He had a tan tee-shirt and green cargo pants.

"Welcome!" called the teenager standing up to shake hands with Harry and Leaf. "I assume you're here to face the Gym Leader in an official match."

It was not voiced as a question but Harry and Leaf found themselves nodding in answer anyway. The teen stood and gestured the younger Trainers to an open arc in the wall behind the circular desk.

"If you would enter the arena, Brock will be with you momentarily to issue the terms of your challenge."

The two aspiring Trainers nodded shakily and stepped through the archway.

**000 0000 000 **

Misty handed Ash a Pokeball that had a stylized drop of water embossed over the open button.

"He'll serve you well in your battle against Brock."

Ash stepped forward and hugged the red headed girl, missing her small blush as he stepped away to examine the Pokeball.

"Thank you very much, Misty!"

"Y-You're welcome, Ash," stuttered the flustered girl. "C'mon, let's get to the Gym."

Ash nodded and attached the borrowed Pokeball to his belt along with his own Pokemon.

Leaving the Pokemon Center, The two were hailed to the side of the road by a middle aged man with brown skin and a rough beard.

"Ash! Where have you been?" he grabbed the boy by the arm and started pulling, "We need to continue super charging your Pikachu if you want any chance at beating Brock!"

Misty, who had been shocked still at the site of a homeless man yell at Ash, unfroze and yanked the boy from Pallet away.

"Who the Hell are you!"

The bearded man looked taken aback.

"I'm just a rock salesman, I was helping your friend prepare to fight Brock."

While Misty was busy mouthing the words 'rock salesman,' Ash looked the man in the eye.

"Um, about that..." said the black haired boy, rubbing the back of his neck and looking skyward. "I'm not going to do that... You see, Misty here has loaned me a Water type... So, I don't think I'll have any trouble."

"Oh. I see. Well I'll just wish you good luck and go back to selling my rocks..."

The man turned and awkwardly shuffled his way back to the southern town gate.

The two tweens looked at each other and shrugged.

"C'mon Misty, Let's get to the Gym."

The Water trainer nodded and followed the boy from Pallet.

**000 0000 000 **

A thirteen year old boy showed Ash and Misty to the spectator stands and left them alone.

"Ash," said Misty tentatively, "watch Harry and Leaf carefully. Look at how they fight; you might learn something."

Ash flinched, but peered at the arena alertly. It seemed as though Harry and Leaf had already decided on an order because Leaf sat on a bench at the side of the arena and Harry stood in the challenger's box looking at his Pokeballs with a fierce determination.

Suddenly, a door opened on the other side of the room, drawing everyone's attention.

**000 0000 000 **

Harry looked up as a door opened on the opposite room and a young man who looked to be nearly seventeen entered the arena. He had dark skin, squinty eyes, and wild black hair. He wore an orange, long sleeve shirt, and brown cargo pants. He had a pendant on a string around his neck and he went barefoot.

"Hello, Challenger! I am Brock. I believe in balancing rock hard defense with shattering attacks. That's why I specialize in Rock and Ground types!"

Even though he delivered his speech with enthusiasm, Harry could see hesitation, a weariness, in the way he held himself.

"We'll use two Pokemon each, and no items!" decided Brock. "I'll give you a moment to make your decisions."

'Alright,' thought Harry, 'Rock and Ground, Rasta's definitely in, but what about my second...'

"Time's up!"

Brock turned to the Official Referee from the Pokemon League and Harry was surprised to see the same man from the Battle Cafe.

"Trainers, declare yourselves!"

"Brock, Gym Leader of Pewter City!"

"Harry Potter, of the Viridian Forest!"

The ref raised his flags.

"In the name of the Kanto Pokemon League, I declare this official match open!"

"Go, Sandslash!"

A three foot tall, anteater-like Pokemon burst from Brock's Pokeball. Its body was mostly covered in sharp, brown quills, with a tough, dry hide. on it's underbelly. It had two long white talons on each hand

"Come on out, Rasta!"

The familiar ball of green vines appeared in a flash of light and with a happy exclamation of it's species.

Harry heard Leaf's Pokedex ding.

_Sandslash (M):  
>The Mouse Pokemon. Sandslash can roll up its body as if it were a ball covered with large spikes. In battle, this Pokémon will try to make the foe flinch by jabbing it with its spines. It then leaps at the stunned foe to tear wildly with its sharp claws. <em>

Harry nodded while Brock grimaced; the Pokedexes really did make battling too easy for his challengers.

"Sandslash, use Crush Claw into Defense Curl!"

The Mouse Pokemon snapped off a nod and fell into a stance before launching itself at the Vine Pokemon, a hazy, black nimbus forming around his claws.

"Dodge it, Rasta! then counter with Vine Whip!"

Sandslash lead with his right paw. Jabbing it at Tangela's body. The green ball jumped to the left and took a grazing blow from the Ground type, ripping a few vines from his side. Vines leapt from Tangela's back and slapped against Sandslash's back, only to be shredded to bits.

The two Pokemon separated after the brief exchange and waited for their Trainer's commands.

"Sandslash, use Dig and wait for my command!"

The Mouse Pokemon burrowed underground with surprising speed, leaving a tunnel behind.

"Rasta, Get ready to dodge!"

Moments later, Brock yelled, "now!" and Sandslash burst from the ground and made for Tangela's back.

"Jump and use Confusion!"

Tangela used his red feet as a springboard and jumped clear over his opponent. Landing behind the Ground type, he sent a burst of psychic energy at Sandslash while it was turning around, forcing it to the ground while his limbs went wonky.

"Follow it up with Absorb!"

"Sandslash, move!"

But it was no good. Short vines burst from atop Tangela's head and started glowing bright green. A similarly green haze appeared around Sandslash and a connection formed between the two Pokemon. As Tangela's vines glowed brighter, the stronger he looked, and the weaker Sandslash appeared until finally, the Mouse Pokemon fainted, damaged by the super effective attack.

"Sandslash is unable to battle!" cried the ref, raising his flag in Harry's direction. "Round One to Harry Potter!"

Brock scowled and recalled his Pokemon allowing Harry to do the same.

"Go, Onix!"

He threw his Pokeball into the arena and a thirty foot long snake made from boulders appeared in a flash of light.

Again, Leaf's Pokedex dinged.

_Onix (F):  
>The Rock Snake Pokemon. Onix has a magnet in its brain. It acts as a compass so that this Pokémon does not lose direction while it is tunneling. As it grows older, its body becomes increasingly rounder and smoother. <em>

Harry gulped at the sheer size of his opponent and wondered who to send out to fight the monstrous thing. Finally, the answer clicked; this was his first Gym battle and it wouldn't feel right not to use-

"-Cendio!"

Charmander jumped from his Pokeball looking ready for a fight.

Both Harry and Charmander growled when they heard Brock laughing at the wizard's choice in Pokemon.

"And here was me, thinking you were smart! Why would you send out a Fire type at a Gym like mine! You would've been better with a Water or another Grass type!"

"Just you wait," muttered Harry. "Cendio, use Metal Claw!"

Charmander leapt forward, claws glowing, and dragged them across Onix's flank, leaving deep gouges in her stone skin.

Onix roared in pain and retaliated out of reflex by jabbing her tail at Cendio, knocking him back to Harry's side.

"Onix, use Slam on Charmander!"

"Dodge and use another Metal Claw!"

But it was no good. Cendio just wasn't quick enough to dodge something so big and he took the large, stone head of the Rock Snake Pokemon to the everything, knocking him to the ground and kicking up a dusty cloud.

"No, Cendio!"

The dust cleared, revealing a bruised and cut up Charmander trying his hardest to stand against the pain in his limbs.

"Onix, end this round with Tackle!"

Harry pulled his Pokeball, fully intending to recall Cendio, when the Lizard Pokemon started glowing white, stopping a surprised Onix in her tracks.

"Wha-What's happening?" asked Ash

"Cendio is evolving..." replied Misty with a sense of awe.

It only took scant moments for the glowing to stop, and where once was a tiny orange lizard now there stood a larger, red-scaled Pokemon, the flame on his tail had doubled in size. He had grown sharp, white talons, and a knob of bone jutted from his head, angled back, like a blunt horn. Cendio roared his new species and stood strong, his evolution healing him.

Leaf's Pokedex dinged.

_Charmeleon (M):  
>The Flame Pokemon. Charmeleon mercilessly destroys its foes using its sharp claws. If it encounters a strong foe, it turns aggressive. In this excited state, the flame at the tip of its tail flares with a bluish white color. <em>

"Harry!" shouted Leaf after looking at her Pokedex, "Cendio's learned new attacks, Swords Dance and Iron Tail!"

Harry grinned.

"Nothing's changed," shouted Brock, "end this Onix, Bind!"

"Dodge it, Cen and then use Swords Dance into Iron Tail!"

Onix's tail snaked across the arena and grabbed at the Flame Pokemon but at the last second, Cendio jumped over the tail and started glowing a dark purple. His muscles expanded and a tension appeared in his limbs. Cendio then landed and shot forward. He whipped a glowing tail directly into Onix's face, slamming her to the ground and leaving a stunned silence in his wake.

When Onix didn't move, the Ref slowly raised his flag.

"Onix is unable to battle, Harry Potter wins the Official Gym Match!"

"Yes!"

Harry deployed his remaining Pokemon and they ran (or floated, in the case of Zeru) to Charmeleon for an implausible group hug.

Harry stood and was tackled in a hug by his best human friend.

"Hary-that-was-awesome!"

Harry laughed and disengaged from Leaf. Turning to Brock, who was switching out his two Pokeballs for another set of Gym Pokemon, he waited. Brock stuffed the minimized capsules into side pockets on his cargo pants and approached, pulling out a slim case similar to a tin box one would hold cigarettes in.

"Here," said Brock, handing the case to Harry, "it's a badge carrying case, it also acts as a registration for the Pokemon League."

Harry nodded at the explanation and opened it. Inside was a shiny, gray badge in the shape of a octagon. The case had seven other padded indents for the other Kanto badges.

"This is the Boulder Badge and you earned it. Evolution aside, you battled wonderfully." He turned to Leaf. "I assume that you're the next Challenger?"

Leaf nodded and gulped while Harry recalled his Pokemon and grinned at Leaf

"Good luck and kick some butt." Harry's grin slipped away when he saw his friend's obvious distress. "Leaf," said Harry seriously. "You'll be fine, you have a Grass type and a Pokemon that knows Fighting type moves. You even have a new mystery Pokemon! Come on, where's that confidence from yesterday!"

Leaf smiled tremulously and Harry grinned once more. They switched places, Harry going to the side bench and Leaf to the Challenger's square.

"Same rules apply!" shouted Brock, readying a Pokeball. "Two Pokemon each!" He looked to the Ref who nodded.

Trainer's declare yourselves!"

"Brock, Gym Leader of Pewter City!"

"Leaf Green, of Pallet Town!"

The Ref raised his flags and swished them downwards.

"In the name of the Kanto Pokemon League, I declare this official match... Open!"

Brock threw his Pokeball which burst open and revealed a brown, mole-like Pokemon which quickly buried itself in the ground, only to stick it's head out.

Harry's Pokedex dinged.

_Diglett (M):  
>The Mole Pokemon. Diglett are raised in most farms. The reason is simple - wherever this Pokémon burrows, the soil is left perfectly tilled for planting crops. This soil is made ideal for growing delicious vegetables. <em>

"A digger, huh? Fine then!" Leaf detached one of the Pokeballs from her wrist strap and tossed it into the arena. "Come on out, Costello!" Leaf was vaguely aware of both Harry and Ash's Pokedexes scanning her Jigglypuff.

"Use Scratch, Diglett!"

The Mole Pokemon burrowed it's way under the ground and tunneled it's way towards the Balloon Pokemon.

"Costello, Defense Curl into Pound!"

Jigglypuff curled into a tight ball and minimized the damage he sustained when Diglett burst forth from the ground and raked his claws across the pink Pokemon's back. Costello unwound his body like a spring, unintentionally launching the Mole Pokemon into the air. Still, orders are orders, Costello used his large feet to jump after Diglett. With an exclamation of his species, Costello's fist reared back and lashed forward in a Pound attack, throwing the tiny ground type back to his trainer's side of the arena.

Diglett slowly stood on his hind legs, before jumping and diving into the ground like a human using a springboard to enter a pool.

"Diglett," shouted Brock before Jigglypuff could land, "Fissure!"

The ground under Jigglypuff started shaking before it cracked open like a localized earthquake. Jagged pillars of stone erupted from the maw and slammed in the slowly descending Normal type. The impact forced Jigglypuff to release the oxygen he was using to stay airborne in a breathy gasp. Costello slammed into the ground with a such force that he actually distended and flattened out slightly. Diglett burst from the tilled ground and waited for an order.

"Costello, use Wish!"

Jigglypuff, who had been struggling to stand under the steady gaze of the Gym Leader started glowing a light blue. Sparkles of light floated around the Normal type, healing the worst of the damage.

"Now use Sing!

For the first time that day, Brock's eyes opened, revealing hazel orbs. He shouted out an order for his Ground type to burrow it's way underground but it was too late; Diglett was entranced by a song only he could hear. It only took a moment for Diglett to start swaying in time before the Mole Pokemon collapsed, asleep.

The Ref waited for a moment while Brock tried to rouse his Pokemon only to raise his flag.

"Diglett is unable to battle! Round One to Leaf Green!"

Both trainers recalled their Pokemon, Brock slightly sullenly and Leaf heaping praise on Costello.

"Come on, Graveler!"

"Alright, It's up to you, Nico!"

Graveler, burst from it's Pokeball looking like a large, rough boulder with two sets of strong arms and stubby legs, It had face on it's rotund body and a ridge of jutting stone like a forehead.

Harry's Pokedex dinged with new information.

_Graveler (M):  
>The Rock Pokemon. Rocks are Graveler's favorite food. This Pokémon will climb a mountain from the base to the summit, crunchingly feasting on rocks all the while. Upon reaching the peak, it rolls back down to the bottom. <em>

Leaf gulped, Gravler like to fall down mountains for fun and eat rocks; how was she supposed to stop that?

"Graveler, use Tackle!"

Graveler rocked back on his heels before springing forward, arms crossed in front of his face, toward the smaller Pokemon.

"Dodge it, Nico and use Focus Energy!"

Nico clenched the muscles in his hind legs and waited until Graveler was nearly on top of the Poison Pin Pokemon before jumping straight over the Rock type. Unfortunately, for Leaf, Nico was sucked into Graveler's slipstream and thrown, arse over teakettle, towards Brock's side of the arena where he landed hard on his flank.

Standing, Nico clenched his muscles and cracked the ground with power. Steam rose from it's body as it waited for an order.

"Jump and use Double Kick, Nico!"

Nico jumped nearly ten feet into the air where he turned and struck out with his hoofed feet.

Brock punched his hand into the air.

"Counter it, Graveler!"

One of Graveler's hands lashed out and snatched Nico from the air and used his own momentum to whip him around and slam the small Pokemon into the ground with a fleshy smack not unlike someone tenderizing a piece of meat.

"Nico!" cried Leaf in worry

Nico glared up at his smug looking opponent and started glowing white.

"More evolutions?" whispered Leaf in astonishment.

The glowing took only a moment to cease and when it had, what looked like a larger, more muscular version of Nidoran with a bigger horn and more spines on it's back stood in the Poison Pin Pokemon's place

Leaf heard a faint dinging noise.

_Nidorino (M):  
>The Poison Pin Pokemon. Nidorino has a horn that is harder than a diamond. If it senses a hostile presence, all the barbs on its back bristle up at once, and it challenges the foe with all its might. <em>

"Leaf!" shouted Harry. "Nico knows Horn Attack!"

Leaf grinned.

"You heard the man, Nico! Horn Attack!"

"Catch it, Graveler!"

The newly evolved Pokemon's horn started glowing a bright white and he stabbed at Graveler's face with a great thrust. But it was no good, Graveler wrapped two hands around Nico's horn and another two around his shoulders, trying to push the feral Pokemon away.

The two physically strong Pokemon struggled against the other's might for several moments until Nico was able to gain some unseen advantage and actually lift the boulder-like Pokemon by using his horn as a shovel. Nico reared back and threw the Rock type towards the Gym Leader where he landed, spider webbing the ground underneath the heavy Pokemon and kicking up a thin cloud of dust.

"Graveler!" exclaimed Brock in alarm.

"Nico! Finish it with Double Kick!"

Nico didn't need telling twice. The pink Pokemon charged forward and landed two devastating kicks, knocking out the Rock Pokemon before jumping back to his trainer's side.

The Ref swished his flags.

"Graveler is unable to battle, Leaf Green wins the Official Gym Match!"

"Yes!"

Like Harry before her, Leaf deployed her other two Pokemon and hugged them all at once as they celebrated their victory. Leaf disengaged from her group hug and turned to embrace Harry before putting all her attention on Brock.

"Congratulations!" said the Gym Leader pulling out a second badge and case. "You've definitely earned this!" The dark skinned man handed Leaf her reward. "The closest Gym is in Cerulean City. You'll have to travel through Mt. Moon to get there, though." Brock handed his Pokeballs to the boy who had been sitting at the front desk and left through a side door.

Both Harry and Leaf nodded and Misty joined the group.

"You guys were great!"

Harry grinned while Leaf thanked Misty for her praise.

"You're still staying for Ash's match, right?"

"Of course!" said Harry while Leaf nodded with a smile. "Do you know where he went?"

Misty nodded and made to leave.

"He wanted to get in some training with the Pokemon I let him borrow."

"What Pokemon was it?" questioned Leaf.

Misty's smiled over her shoulder while walking to the exit. "You'll see tomorrow..."

Harry and Leaf turned to each other and grinned, holding up their badges, they'd support Ash tomorrow, but today was for celebrating their own victories and a hurdle jumped.

**000 Chapter End 000 **

**Author's Note:** Finally! That chapter was such a pain to write. I was only able to type out a few paragraphs a day and even that took several hours to do...

**Author's Note, Part Deux:** Good news everyone! I've finalized the teams for Harry and Leaf. Just remember that I took liberties with Move Pools and Pokemon Locations.

**Character Profile: Ash Ketchem (a.k.a Red) **

**Age**: Ten  
><strong>Height:<strong> four feet, ten inches  
><strong>Goals:<strong> Ash's goal (like many children) is to be the world's greatest Pokemon Master.

**Ash's Party:  
><strong>Name: Pikachu  
>Species: Mouse Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: Electric<br>Nature: Brave  
>Ability: Lightningrod- Draws in all Electric-type moves to up Sp. Attack.<br>Original Trainer: Ash  
>Received From Professor Oak.<br>Nickname: None  
>Moves Known: Quick Attack, Thunder Shock, Agility, Flash<p>

Name: Butterfree  
>Species: Butterfly Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: BugFlying  
>Nature: Bashful<br>Ability: Compoundeyes- The Pokemon's accuracy is boosted  
>Original Trainer: Ash<br>Caught in the Viridian Forest  
>Nickname: None<br>Moves Known: Gust, Stun Spore, Confusion, Sleep Powder

Name: Pidgeotto  
>Species: Bird Pokemon<br>Gender: Male  
>Type: NormalFlying  
>Nature: Hasty<br>Ability: Keen Eye- Prevents the Pokemon from losing accuracy  
>Original Trainer: Ash<br>Caught in the Viridian Forest  
>Nickname: None<br>Moves Known: Quick Attack, Roost, Wing Attack, Air Slash

Mysterious Water Pokemon  
>On loan from Misty<p> 


End file.
